The Seven Smash Spirits: A Smash Bros Story
by Eternal Smasher
Summary: Melee. Jigglypuff accidentally releases the Seven Smash Spirits into the Smash Bros. World...and it's up to her to reseal them! Chapter 16 up! All members of the party face what may be their toughest challenges yet.
1. An Unfair Fight

The Seven Smash Spirits: A Smash Bros. Story

Chapter 1: An Unfair Fight (prologue)

"THIS ISN'T FAIR!!" yelled Jigglypuff, who was getting beaten up very badly. By DK. Which was extremely unfair. They were fighting on the left of Fourside, the city level. DK had 5 lives and 14 percent damage; Jigglypuff had 1 life to live and 87 percent damage. DK used Hand Slap. Jigglypuff jumped to avoid the shockwaves and sang, putting DK to sleep. She pounded him, then DK started charging his punch. He stopped almost immediately and slapped Jigglypuff away. He charged until his punch was full, then he slapped Jigglypuff again. She tried to use Rollout, but when she unleashed it, DK used his Giant Punch. It broke the attack. All Jigglypuff could do was cry as she turned into a star.

"Finally! Game!" said DK, bored.

He collected his battle earnings (1 coin) and headed through a rippling, translucent portal. Jigglypuff returned, healed, and followed.

* * *

Pichu was waiting for them at the door to the Smash Bros. Manor.

"Hi! How was the match?" he said cheerfully, as always.

Jigglypuff didn't answer. She just walked sadly to the Royal Room.

"Hello, Jigglypuff," said Peach.

"Hi," said Jigglypuff, sadly.

"What's wrong?" asked Nana.

"She lost," said DK.

"Don't rub it in, stupid!" said Fox.

"Big deal!" said Bowser, unsurprisingly.

"Quiet, all of you!" said Samus. They got into an argument on Jigglypuff's behalf.

"Hey! I wanna join in!" said Ness.

"Me too!" said Young Link. They joined in the argument while everybody stared.

"Hey, you don't need to feel bad. Almost everyone loses to DK," said Kirby.

"Thank you, Kirby," said Jigglypuff, feeling loved, "but not like I did."

She started to cry.

"Look, it's no big deal," said C. Falcon. "It's only-"

"If you were me, you'd understand!" she yelled. She stormed out the Manor.

"I hope she'll be alright," said a concerned Peach.

"She is just embarrassed. She will be fine," said Mewtwo.

_That felt good. Stay tuned for Chapter 2!_


	2. The Magic Fountain

Chapter 2: The Magic Fountain

_Keep reading!_

Jigglypuff was in the Smash Central Park (a.k.a. the All-Star lobby) staring into the water fountain.

"Pathetic reflection. It's not fair!" she cried. "Why did Master Hand have to make me fight DK?! What for?! It was that match that made me realize how puny I am. When DK broke my attack..." She sighed deeply. "The only person that truly makes me happy is Kirby. He's always cheering me up. I wonder..."

She started crying again.

"I'm not cut out for this. I wish...I was."

A teardrop fell into the fountain. Jigglypuff wiped her tears and sat on the bench. Storm clouds appeared overhead.

"I better go," said Jigglypuff. Just as she was about to leave, a big flash came from the fountain.

"Huh?" Jigglypuff puffed over to the fountain. She kept a safe distance, because she wasn't at all sure what would happen. That was wise, because right then, lightning struck the fountain.

"Wow..." said Jigglypuff, staring. For a while, the fountain was sparkling and flashing. There was an explosion that knocked Jigglypuff into a tree. She wasn't hurt much. She shook her head and opened her eyes, watching in awe and waiting for more.

Seven colors burst out of the fountain. They all scattered one by one in different directions: red, blue, gray, brown, black, white, and yellow. Jigglypuff wondered fearfully if she had broken something. When the colors had disappeared, the last light that appeared shone all of the colors of the rainbow. Jigglypuff's fright turned into joy as she gazed at it. It was sparkling and shining bright. The storm even disappeared. It was beautiful. The light formed the shape of what seemed to be a rabbit-girl. Now Jigglypuff's joy turned into excitement. She bounced up and down, full of eagerness. The light slowly descended.

"Oh..." said Jigglypuff, laughing to herself. The light shone above the ground and started to fade. The form was a rabbit; just a rabbit. It was about Jigglypuff's height. Its fur was yellow. Its ears were yellow with pink insides. Its eyes were light blue and its nose was heart-shaped and colored red. The only piece of clothing it wore was a rainbow colored hat. Jigglypuff walked toward it.

"Who are you?" asked Jigglypuff, curiously.

"I am Chisakimaku," she said.

"Huh?" said Jigglypuff. "Chisakimaku?"

"Chi!" she replied.

"Okay."

"I am the Spirit of the Rainbow!" said Chisakimaku, making a rainbow with her hands.

"You're a spirit?"

"Yep! Surprised, ain't ya?"

"Very. So what brings you here?"

"You brought me here, chi!"

"How? You know what? Let's get outta here. You can tell me more at the Manor."

"Let's go, then."

They walked to the Manor. Jigglypuff's sorrow had disappeared because of Chisakimaku. She wanted to learn everything about her new friend.

_As the story progresses, my chapters get longer! See you next chapter!_


	3. Chisakimaku's 411

Chapter 3: Chisakimaku's 411

_I'm going to send a profile real soon...Quack!_

Nightfall. Jigglypuff and Chisakimaku had just made it to the Manor. Jigglypuff opened the door. Chisakimaku looked around.

"All right. Now we need to go into my room without you being seen. I bet they'll think you're a stray or something," said Jigglypuff.

"Chi! But...I'm sooooo hungry," said Chisakimaku.

Jigglypuff sighed. "I thought spirits didn't need to eat."

"This one does!"

"Okay. You come with me." They went into the kitchen. "What do you...?" She made a suppressed scream. Ness and Young Link were grumbling because they had to wash dishes. "Now what?"

Chisakimaku was gone.

"Oh, no! Where is she?" Jigglypuff looked around frantically with no luck.

"Wait! If she's gone, then I could just go in and take a whole bunch of food. So what if they get suspicious?" she realized. She walked into the kitchen once more. Ness jumped down from his stool.

"Jigglypuff! What took you so long? Where were you?"

"Out," said Jigglypuff, practically ignoring him. She opened the refrigerator and took so much food that she was barely visible.

"You must be hungry. You missed dinner," said Young Link.

Jigglypuff left and dropped a pickle on the way out. She struggled to get upstairs and to her room, almost falling several times. Once inside, she dropped the food and exhaled.

"Ah! Finally! Now...where is Chisakimaku?"

"Chi!" she said from behind her. "Told ya I'm a spirit." She made another rainbow. Jigglypuff, unamused, dragged the food further into her room. She plopped on the bed.

"Alright, Chisakimaku. Time to spill the...Chisakimaku?"

She was eating all of DK's bananas.

"Listen to me! Pass me a banana. Ow!" Jigglypuff got hit.

"Oops! Sorry, chi!"

"Chisakimaku, you have to tell me everything."

"All right. I'll answer any and all questions." Chisakimaku began stuffing her face at this time.

"First off: What was with that fountain? And that thing about 'I brought you here'?"

"It's true! I was sealed in that fountain about 700 years ago." Crackers.

Jigglypuff choked on her banana.

"700?!"

"I don't need to tell you again, I'm a spirit!'

"Details."

"700 years ago, I lived a peaceful life. I was not a spirit back then. The Smash Bros. World was a beautiful place, just as it is now. One day I was exploring a cave. I saw this shadowy figure. It looked like...a hand." Apple.

Jigglypuff had an idea on who it was. She was surprised that they, or even Smash Bros. had existed so long.

"That hand promised to make me into a spirit, no, two spirits in one." Chicken.

"Two? Continue."

"A couple of weeks later, a group known as the Seven Smash Spirits came again to terrorize this world."

"Again?"

"I was the only one who could defeat them, since they killed mortals easily. I sealed them into the fountain...but I think I was also sealed by another hand who probably thought I was a Smash Spirit." Juice.

"Oh...so, how did you get back?"

"The only thing that could bring me back was a tear of sorrow."

"Oh!" She remembered what had happened earlier.

"But that came with a consequence. If I were released, the Seven Smash Spirits would be released as well...Wait! They have been released! This is big trouble!"

"Huh?" Jigglypuff remembered the different colors that flashed across the sky. "Those were...spirits?"

"I've been banned from resealing the spirits. Jigglypuff...she's mortal. But...she's also the Spirit Hunter." Jigglypuff concluded that her new friend was thinking aloud. "You must seal them again, chi!"

"Me? How?" Jigglypuff was more scared than excited.

"Here!" She gave Jigglypuff her hat. "This is what I used to seal the spirits."

Jigglypuff thought the hat was just an ordinary hat. But it was the magic hat that would help her a lot...if she could master its power.

"What if I refuse?" She placed the hat on the bed.

"The Seven Smash Spirits will destroy the Smash , just as they intend."

Jigglypuff froze. The Smash Bros. World was her favorite world in the world. The levels...the fighting...the cities...the life...she could not imagine all of those things destroyed. She knew that she had to do everything in her power to stop the spirits from terrorizing the Smash Bros. World.

"Chisakimaku...you can count on me!" She put the hat on her head. It started to glow.

"You're putting courage into your work, chi!"

"Hey! You said that you were two spirits in one. Where's the other?"

"You'll see...tomorrow."

"Where are you sleeping?"

Chisakimaku glowed twice, quickly, like a very bright alarm. A blue cloud floated through Jigglypuff's window.

"You sleep on that?"

"Yep! Anyway..." She jumped on the cloud, taking the food with her. "I'll be back at 9:00 exactly."

"See you tomorrow!" yelled Jigglypuff as the cloud rose into the sky and disappeared with a flash. Jigglypuff crawled into her bed and had a dreamless sleep. For tomorrow, she would start the Spirit Search...  
_  
Longer, right? Bye!_


	4. Fight Fire Without Fire

Chapter 4: Fight Fire Without Fire

_The 1st spirit battle...yay! Uh...what more do I have to tell you? I don't know._

Jigglypuff woke up at 8:57 a.m. She got out of her bed. She went into the bathroom and met Popo, Pikachu, and Luigi.

"Hello. Are you okay now?" Popo asked.

"Yep," said Jigglypuff, smiling. She started washing her face.

"You have another match today," said Pikachu.

"Who?" asked Jigglypuff.

"Yoshi," said Luigi, waiting to brush his teeth.

"Oh. Okay," replied Jigglypuff.

"I'm fighting Roy," stated Pikachu.

"Me and Nana are against Samus," said Popo," and I'm not at all happy."

"I'm facing..." Luigi shuddered. "...Mr. Game & Watch."

No one liked to fight him because, not only was his Judgment move dangerous and unpredictable, it was weird fighting someone that flat.

"Oooh, that's rough! Well..." said Jigglypuff, who was about to leave," good luck to all of you."

"Same to you!" everyone said.

Just then, Jigglypuff heard a yell.

"WHO ATE MY BANANAS?!?" yelled DK. That woke up everyone.

"Not again," said Ness.

"Who did it this time?" said Zelda.

"Oh, great," said Jigglypuff. She knew that Chisakimaku had eaten all of those bananas. She snuck into her room.

"Chisakimaku! It's 9! You're supposed to be here!" she called out the window. The blue cloud floated through her window again.

"Alright, Chi...Hey! You're not Chisakimaku!"

This was true; Chisakimaku wasn't there. There was a little girl that took her place. She was about 2 feet and 6 inches taller than Jigglypuff. The rabbit ears that were yellow with pink insides were still there, but she had flowing blonde hair. She wore a light blue dress with a daisy pattern on it. The hat had heart patterns instead of rainbow coloring. Her eyes were still light blue and she still had a red, heart-shaped nose. She wore yellow, buckled shoes. Overall, she looked to be about 12.

"You must be the other spirit Chisakimaku told me about."

"Yes. I am Chisakumaki, the Spirit of Love."

_Heh, ew,_ Jigglypuff thought.

"What are your abilities?" she asked curiously.

Chisakumaki held Jigglypuff's head and closed her eyes. After a few seconds, she bent down to Jigglypuff's ear, and whispered, "This'll be our little secret."

"...Okay. Sure. I think I know what you did."

"Now I suggest you eat something before you start the Search."

Jigglypuff and Chisakumaki (in case you're wondering: Chisakimaku=Chee-sah-kee-mah-koo, Chisakumaki=Chee-sah-koo-mah-kee) went downstairs. Jigglypuff poured a bowl of cereal.

"Who are you fighting today?" asked Chisakumaki.

"Yoshi," answered Jigglypuff.

"All right. I would've trained you if we had time. So you have to master the hat's power on your own."

"Hope this isn't too brutal..."

"Jigglypuff, I'm ready to go!" said Yoshi.

"Okay." When Jigglypuff and Yoshi were leaving, she heard a faint voice saying, "Good luck, Jigglypuff." She nodded and left.  


* * *

Yoshi and Jigglypuff were fighting in the Brinstar Depths. Only one life for both fighters. Yoshi made the first move. He jumped and did the multi-hitting down aerial. Jigglypuff gained 35% damage. She put Yoshi to sleep. Then, she grabbed him and puffed him away. Yoshi landed on a platform with a Pokeball on it. He threw it, hitting Jigglypuff. Clefairy appeared and used Razor Wind. Jigglypuff was caught in it, and the stage began to rotate to the left. Clefairy began to fall, but Jigglypuff was still caught in the wind! But, as luck would have it, Clefairy disappeared in the nick of time, and Jigglypuff was able to puff back up.

Jigglypuff had 81% damage, yet Yoshi only had 12% damage. The odds were against her. She had to think fast. The stage moved to the right. Jigglypuff spotted a Heart Container.

"Yes!" she said, picking it up. Her damage went down to 0%. She used her Downward Smash on, then pounded, Yoshi. She found a Super Scope and charged the shot. When it was halfway charged, she fired, and hit Yoshi before he could jump. He had 74% damage. Jigglypuff jumped towards him and used Rest. It sent him flying. When Jigglypuff woke up, the match was over, and Yoshi had just left through the portal. She collected her earnings (1 coin) and tried to leave, but there was a wide ring of fire blocking the portal.

Then, Chisakumaki appeared out of nowhere.

"You forgot the hat!" said Chisakumaki. She threw it at Jigglypuff, who caught it and put it on her head. It glowed softly.

"No! The Ring of Fire! The Spirit of Fire is here!" yelled Chisakumaki.

"It is...? Where?" replied Jigglypuff, scared.

"You can't escape until you defeat him!" The stage grew hotter and darker than it already was. Their hats helped them see, but the heat worried Jigglypuff. There was a hideous laugh.

"Hot, isn't it? The Ring of Fire is closing in, too." A larger ring of fire surrounded the boundaries of the entire level, and seemed to gradually tighten. "Better hurry up!" There was a geyser of lava behind Jigglypuff that startled her. When it disappeared, there was a semi-transparent, red-orange, bald, male figure that had small fireballs for eyes. The tips of his fingers were flames. He had no feet.

"I am Volcanis, The Spirit of Fire! I'm here to terrorize!" he said. Kraid appeared in the background. Volcanis turned around.

"Be gone, beast!" He fired a fireball at Kraid. There was a huge explosion. When Jigglypuff looked, Kraid was gone.

"That wasn't nice!" Jigglypuff exclaimed, her hat glowing rapidly.

"You must be the new Spirit Hunter. Bit puffy," said Volcanis.

"Shut up!" She tried to punch Volcanis.

"Wait! You shouldn't attack him directly..." Chisakumaki said. After that, she heard a loud shriek, which was, of course, Jigglypuff getting burned.

"You should've heeded her words," said Volcanis, chuckling.

"Tap into the power of your hat," insisted Chisakumaki.

"How the hell do I do that?" Jigglypuff said to herself. Volcanis finally threw a fireball at Jigglypuff. She dodged the fireball, but not the explosion. It knocked her into a wall. She rubbed her head.

"You'll never beat me if you don't even know how!" laughed Volcanis. He threw another fireball. The explosion knocked Jigglypuff into a nearby platform.

"This is getting seriously frustrating," she said to herself. She tried to think of another strategy. But there was something she had forgotten and had paid no attention to...The Ring of Fire was still closing in. That further hampered her thoughts. The only thing Jigglypuff could do was use her magical hat. But how...? She had severe trouble thinking. It felt like a picture that was partially completed.

"You have to clear your thoughts! I went through the same thing and I was a spirit!" yelled Chisakumaki.

"I'm trying..."

Volcanis appeared overhead.

"What's the matter, puffball? Too hot for ya?" he said. That was the problem. Jigglypuff was getting a heat stroke. Volcanis used a move that was a lot like Fire Spin. The only differences were its size (it was much wider) and the fact that Volcanis _was_ the tornado. Jigglypuff laid helplessly on the platform, dry, crying, and slightly hyperventilating. The tornado rushed toward her. It pulled her in. All Chisakumaki could see was a giant cyclone made of fire and lava from below, and a very close Ring of Fire; all she could hear was Jigglypuff's screaming.

"Just one thought..." said Chisakumaki.

Jigglypuff was completely helpless. She just kept twirling quickly and getting burned all over. She tried her best to struggle free, but it was useless, especially if you're dizzy and burned all at once.

"Something's missing..."

The heat and the motion soon overwhelmed her. She fainted. Her hat's light faded. Even so, Volcanis wanted her burned to a crisp, so the tornado kept on spinning. Chisakumaki closed her eyes. She glowed an intense white. She disappeared.

Inside Jigglypuff's mind, everything was dark. In the midst of the darkness, there was a faint light in the distance. It resembled Chisakumaki.

"Do you see this?" Her voice echoed. Jigglypuff shook her head.

"Exactly! This is what'll happen if just one of the spirits remains. Total devastation. Total darkness. Listen! You have to complete the unfinished picture. Find what is missing!"

"But...how...?" Jigglypuff's voice echoed as well.

"Look inside..." Chisakumaki's light and her voice started to fade. "Look...inside..." She reappeared outside.

"Hope that helps," she said. Inside the tornado, Jigglypuff opened her eyes slowly and gasped.

"Kraid!" she said. That completed the picture. Kraid was missing from the background.

"She's back in business!"

Jigglypuff's hat grew brighter than ever before. Even Chisakumaki could see the light. It turned into a blue color. Jigglypuff began to spin faster...and faster...and faster still...until she made her own cyclone...that was made of water.

"Noooooooo! This is impossible!" Volcanis cried out, spinning and spinning. His eyes fizzed out. Then his hands disappeared. He was flipped upside down. Chisakumaki heard a loud "Jiggly!" and Volcanis, along with the tornado, vanished. The water became blue sparks that slowly rained down on the stage. The sparks put out the Rings of Fire.

She had sealed the 1st Smash Spirit. Chisakumaki rushed toward her.

"Hey! Are you okay?"

Jigglypuff groaned. "What happened?" she asked in a weak voice.

"You've sealed away Volcanis." Jigglypuff smiled, then closed her eyes. Chisakumaki nodded and called the Spirit Cloud. She put Jigglypuff on the cloud and jumped on the cloud and jumped on the cloud herself. They flew through the portal and to the Manor. Jigglypuff remembered nothing more.


	5. The Best Day

_This is my __**fifth** time trying to get this chapter on a computer. I've been trying for months. I've been through hell to get this thing done. __**Somebody** will appreciate this one. It's romantic, if not a little cheesy..._

Chapter 5: The Best Day

Jigglypuff opened her eyes. She had no idea where she was or what time it was.

"Where...Oh! This is my room..."

As soon as she realized this, she left her room, and her hat. She needed to find out if she had any matches that day. Upon entering the dining room, she saw Pichu, Roy, Falco, and Dr. Mario eating breakfast: eggs, bacon, pancakes, waffles.

"Hi, Jigglypuff!" the cheery Pichu said.

Jigglypuff waved. She did this quickly and almost rudely.

"Do any of you know if I have any matches?" she asked.

"I don't think so," Roy said.

Falco remained silent.

"All I know is, I gotta face Link," said Pichu, abnormally calm about facing _Link_ of all people. He sipped orange juice as he spoke.

"Oh. Dr. Mario, does DK still need some...well, attention?"

"He's making better progress than previously. He has a 3:30 appointment," the doctor informed the curious puffball. She began to return to her room.

"There's eggs and stuff on the counter!" Pichu yelled. Jigglypuff heard, but did not respond. She went in her room and picked the hat up from the light pink pillow. She put it on. It glowed radiantly and powerfully.

"Guess I'll go to the city," she told herself.

"Chi!"

Jigglypuff, only slightly startled, remained silent for a second before saying "Hi" in a neutral tone.

"Any matches?"

Jigglypuff shook her head.

"Uh-uh. I'm going out. You can come too, as long as no one sees you." She did not want anyone to know that she was hunting spirits. And there were two reasons for that.

The first is because she didn't want the attention of the Smashers. The hat wasn't much of a problem, but its magic could have others thinking that when she fights, she cheats. Also, people may crowd her and treat her like even more of a celebrity. She didn't need that.

The second is because if an authority found out (i.e. Master Hand, Peach) she may be prohibited to do so altogether. Her destiny wasn't _glamorous_, but she felt as if this was a necessity now. She finally felt important. And nothing was going to take that away from her.

"Gotcha!" Chisakimaku said seconds before she vanished into thin air. Jigglypuff headed out of the Manor. Pichu was putting his dirty dishes in the sink.

"I'll eat yours if you don't want it," said Pichu, still hungry.

"Go ahead," Jigglypuff responded absent-mindedly. Pichu cheered as Jigglypuff left.

The day was nice and sunny. The breezes were fairly warm and pleasant. Jigglypuff took a deep breath of fresh air and looked up at the small, white clouds. She spotted a ball-shaped cloud. It reminded her of Kirby, for some reason. She sighed and even blushed a little bit. Her reverie was cut short by a distant "Chi!". Jigglypuff kept looking upward, the direction of the squeal. A blue cloud, the Spirit Cloud, began to descend.

_I remember that cloud,_ she thought as she gazed.

It took around 5 seconds for the cloud to reach the ground.

"Hello again, chi!" Chisakimaku was lying on the cloud.

"How'd you do that?" asked a dumbfounded Jigglypuff.

"Spirits can do stuff like that."

Jigglypuff remained standing there, staring.

"Well? Aren't you getting on?" Chisakimaku patted the cloud.

"I thought only spirits could ride it."

"Mortals could, but only truly worthy ones. And you, Jigglypuff, are worthy, chi!"

Jigglypuff's heart jumped. She could feel that she wasn't just saying that to be nice. Maybe this feeling was what made her instantaneously jump on the cloud? Maybe this feeling was what kept her from falling through? She knew one thing for sure.

The cloud was like a bed of cotton, and she felt even lighter.

"Great! Now let's go!"

Chisakimaku made the cloud rise.

"Where are we headed?" she asked.

"Electri-City," replied Jigglypuff.

Chisakimaku nodded. There was a great, loud, "Chi!" and the cloud flew eastward.

"Can we go higher?"

"Chi!"

The cloud ascended above the clouds. Jigglypuff was astonished. The scenery from that altitude was gorgeous. In her eyes, it was more beautiful than the Rainbow Cruise or the Fountain of Dreams. The wind on her face felt wonderful. She could see the fountain where she first met Chisakimaku in the distance.

_I know what could make this more perfect._

Chisakimaku knew what she wanted. She raised her short arm and, with a slow sweeping motion, made a huge rainbow across the sky. The sight almost made Jigglypuff cry.

"Is that it?" Chisakimaku pointed to an oddly-isolated group of tall buildings.

"Yeah. We're almost there," answered Jigglypuff.

"Gotcha!"

Chisakimaku yelled "Chi!" and the cloud rushed toward the city. Down toward the city. They were moving so fast, Jigglypuff had to grab onto the back of the cloud. Chisakimaku was just sitting calmly, smiling.

"Isn't this a bit fast?" yelled Jigglypuff, her voice being a little shaky.

"Nope! Just hold on!" Chisakimaku yelled back.

They continued their dive towards Electri-City. Jigglypuff was screaming and somewhat laughing, as if she were on a roller coaster. Chisakimaku just sat and smiled.

The city was getting closer. The residents heard a distinct noise that sounded like a jet. They looked up into the sky but saw nothing.

The two were closing in on an empty alley. Pretty soon, they crashed with a muted impact into a bunch of garbage cans, which people heard but eventually stopped caring about. The Spirit Cloud had vanished, as did Chisakimaku. Jigglypuff sprang up and dusted herself off. She looked around.

"Chisakimaku..." she whispered.

"I'm here, chi!" said Chisakimaku's voice.

"Where are you?"

"I'm invisible, of course. I'll be with you but you or anyone else won't be able to see me, chi!"

"Well then, let's get outta this alley." Jigglypuff held whatever amount of nose she had as she and Chisakimaku walked out of the alley.

Electri-City gets its name from its famous light patterns that appear only in the evening. That, and it gets very bright at night, even from a distance. Electri-City has a population of 214,000. In the daytime hours, there are fewer people out than in the nighttime. Attractions include a 24-hour, mile long arcade which features every Nintendo game ever created. "The Ultimate Arcade" updates its collection every month, so it is always expanding. "The Nightlife" casino is always open at night and rarely open during the day. The city also houses many fabulous restaurants and electronics stores.

Jigglypuff only wanted to go to the arcade today.

She went to the arcade, paid nothing as all Smashers do, and played for about 4 hours. When she and Chisakimaku left, there was a van driving around announcing the big battle between the Fighting Wire Frames and the Fighting Polygon Team, viewable in City Central.

"Sounds exciting, chi!"

_Yeah..._

"Let's go," said Jigglypuff.

The two walked to City Central (which, if you're wondering, resembles a longer version of Times Square). Along the way, many people asked Jiglypuff for her autograph. She didn't mind. She signed each one of them. When she reached City Central, the battle was already halfway over. Jigglypuff stood and watched. It was 40 against 40. The Frames were winning by a narrow lead, 20 to 19. Because of the limited variety the teams' attacks, the match started to bore Jigglypuff.

"Wanna go yet?" she asked quietly.

"Yeah, let's go, chi," Chisakimaku replied.

The two started to walk away before Jigglypuff bumped into Kirby.

"Hello!" he said.

Jigglypuff hesitated to speak.

"Hi..." she said.

"You were watching the match too, right? It got boring fast. I just hope the Polygons win."

_Oh, Kirby..._

"So do I..." Jigglypuff blushed slightly. Chisakimaku wanted to giggle very badly, but she held it in.

"I'm gonna go get something to eat. Are you coming with?" asked Kirby.

_Yes...I'll go with you forever..._

"Okay..." replied Jigglypuff, now smiling and blushing.

"I'm outta here, chi," whispered Chisakimaku, who rose upward. Jigglypuff really didn't care. She just walked off with Kirby to the nearest restaurant.  


* * *

Later that day...

Kirby and Jigglypuff were in the Smash Central Park a few minutes after sunset, a few minutes before the light show. They had been to a restaurant, the arcade (again), the museum for a little while, and back into the same restaurant because Kirby was still hungry. Eventually, they ended up in the park.

"I have to ask you a question," said Kirby.

"What is it?" asked Jigglypuff, wondering what he wanted to know.

"That hat is pretty. Where'd you get it?"

_Should I tell him?_

"Um..."

_What would he think of me?_

"Well..."

_Would he believe me?_

"Trust me, I won't be surprised. Really."

_Fine._

"A...spirit gave me this."

"Okay. Why?"

"I have a duty. You know the fountain, right?"

"Of course." Kirby was interested now.

"That thing was filled with spirits. Evil spirits. And I accidentally let them out with my sorrow."

"Oh, right..." He remembered what had happened yesterday. He also remembered those weird lights he saw.

"One of the spirits befriended me, gave me this hat, and told me I was the new Spirit Hunter. I have to use its magic to re-seal them and bring peace to this world, and possibly the universe. As of right now...you're the only one that knows."

Kirby was speechless as he watched the hat glow bright red.

"Volcanis, the Spirit of Fire, is already inside."

"Cool..." Kirby gazed into the warm light.

"So...what do you think?"

Kirby thought for a moment.

"This is just what you needed."

Jigglypuff blinked.

"Really?"

"Yeah. No one really treats you with any respect or gives you any confidence. This is what _your_ spirit needs. Everyone will wonder how they ever lived without you after this."

_I never thought about that. He's so smart..._

"Good point...you know, there's something else you don't know yet as well."

"What is it?"

Jigglypuff started blushing again. She inched closer to Kirby.

"I really like you."

Kirby said nothing for a couple of seconds.

"Well..."

Kirby leaned over and kissed Jigglypuff on the cheek.

"Same here." Kirby smiled.

_He's so...awesome..._

"Now what? Wanna wait for the light show?" asked Kirby.

Jigglypuff said nothing and hugged Kirby softly. Kirby embraced her until the light show began.  


* * *

Later that night...

The sun had set and stars were shining brightly in the sky. The moon was full. Kirby, since finding out about Jigglypuff being the Spirit Hunter, now greatly admired her hat, which was shining as bright as the stars. Jigglypuff was smiling and Kirby was staring at the hat in awe as the two made it to the Manor.

"Now remember, I don't want anyone else finding out about this yet," whispered Jigglypuff somewhat sternly.

"Sure. Good night," Kirby said as he walked upstairs to his room. Once again, Jigglypuff had missed dinner, but she didn't mind. She had the best day of her life. So far, anyway.

Jigglypuff soon went to her own room, where she heard a cheerful "Chi!". Chisakimaku was outside her window on the Spirit Cloud.

"Is that your way of saying good night?" Jigglypuff asked.

"If you want it to!"

Jigglypuff didn't reply.

"Expect me back at 10 in the morning tomorrow. Actually, just expect me, chi!"

"Til then."

The Spirit Cloud rose into the sky; it and Chisakimaku disappeared with a flash.

Jigglypuff turned on the T.V. and laid in the bed. The news was on. The reporter said:

"It has been long awaited, but finally, the results for the 'match of the year' are in, and it looks like, through amazing luck, the Polygons are victorious!"

"Nice..." Jigglypuff nodded. The news switched to the fight. A female Fighting Wire Frame and a Fighting Polygon resembling Yoshi were left in the middle of Battlefield. Both damages were equalized at 82 percent.

"This was the moment of the match that determined a victor. Watch this," the reporter added.

The two jumped and kicked each other with an equal amount of force. They both didn't make it back, but the Frame fell first.

"An ending for the ages. A lot of people lost a lot of money today, I'm sure. Now we bring you Mrs. Azumi with tomorrow's weather. "

"Thanks, Billy. Tomorrow looks to be not much different than today, with soft breezes and a high of 73 degrees."

Jigglypuff turned the T.V. and her lamp off.

"Good enough for me."

She crawled into her covers and fell asleep fast, having only sweet thoughts...

_Victory is mine! Now it'll be a while before the next chapter, which is a spirit battle, is up. Too bad. Oh. One more thing._

_Told ya! Read my profile if you don't get it..._


	6. Water Water, Everywhere

_Okay. The second spirit battle has arrived. This is going to be pretty long by my standards, so enjoy._

Chapter 6: Water, Water, Everywhere

Jigglypuff awoke at 10 a.m. sharp. She got out of bed and yawned. It was fairly warm, nice and sunny. With no clouds in sight.

But it was raining.

"Hey, wait." Jigglypuff ran over to her window and looked outside. It was pouring rain, somehow. In fact, the Smash Bros. World was flooding.

"This can't be a sun shower. It must be the second spirit." Jigglypuff sighed. "This sucks."

"That's right, chi!" Chisakimaku appeared out of thin air again.

"That's not right…how come Volcanis didn't do this? _I'm_ the hunter here!"

"Some spirits are more drastic than others. Along the way, you'll discover which ones," said Chisakimaku.

"Well, I'm not gonna let the World die so quickly." Jigglypuff got her hat off of her dresser. It shined intensely, and then faded away. Jigglypuff's stomach growled loudly.

"After breakfast," she said, walking out of the room. Chisakimaku disappeared. As Jigglypuff walked down to the dining room, she heard a fair amount of commotion about the weather and how weird it was.

"Hey, sleepyhead," greeted C. Falcon.

"Good morning," said Mario.

"Hey," replied Jigglypuff as she went in the kitchen. She met Peach and Zelda cooking breakfast. They both said "Good morning" and continued.

"What are you making?" asked Jigglypuff.

"Home fries and bacon," answered Peach.

Jigglypuff knew that was good news, despite the weather and the upcoming battle. Peach cooked the same way she fought: with grace and elegance. A delicious breakfast was imminent.

"See all that rain? It's weird," said Zelda.

"Yeah…weird," said Jigglypuff.

"Breakfast will be ready soon, so you might as well sit," informed Peach. Jigglypuff walked back into the dining room and sat next to (who else?) Kirby.

"Morning, Kirby."

"Hi." Kirby was a bit impatient when it came to food.

"This weather is pretty eerie, you know?" said Pichu, shuddering.

Jigglypuff nodded once, already sick of hearing about the weather.

"It feels like the weather was created by some evil force or something," said Fox.

_You don't know how right you are,_ Jigglypuff thought.

"I'm gonna be so bored!" complained Ness, who was supposed to be fighting Mewtwo, who was silent as a mime.

"The food's coming!" Peach called out. Since she couldn't possibly carry all of the plates, Zelda used magic to lift them and take them to the dining room. The plates hovered above the table for a few seconds, then landed softly in front of everyone except Mewtwo, who didn't eat at all, and Mr. Game & Watch. Because of his flat figure, nothing - including liquid - could enter his body outside of battle, which is where he got all of his meals.

Jigglypuff ate very quickly, not only because she had to find a way to leave the mansion but also because she was hungry. Everyone stared at her, gobbling and gulping, with amazement and curiosity.

"Wow…" said Pichu, wishing he could eat that fast. He tried once and got sick, so he promised himself not to do it again.

_Almost done,_ thought Jigglypuff. She began to feel full, but she kept eating. She wasn't even thirsty. Thinking of liquid, at the moment, made her cringe.

Jigglypuff had finished eating in 13 seconds. As soon as she finished, she ran upstairs to her room. Everyone stared for a few for moments before resuming their conversations and eating their own food.

* * *

Jigglypuff busted open her door with a relieved and satisfied sigh.

"We need to get outta here!" She was only slightly worried now that she was with Chisakimaku.

"I know. We gotta take to the skies if you wanna find the spirit, chi."

"It's not that simple!" Jigglypuff kicked her door closed. "What if they find out?"

"I really don't think they'd be mad at you for saving their lives."

_That's actually true,_ Jigglypuff thought.

"Well, even if we do leave, how do we get past the Magic Seal?"

Jigglypuff had a point. The Magic Seal. It was created by Master Hand and Crazy Hand to keep the Manor and the Smashers safe in bad weather. It's basically an 800 ft. tall, 900 ft. wide invisible bubble. It is indestructible; no one can get in or out except for Zelda/Sheik or Mewtwo, who can both teleport, and the Hands themselves.

"You can pass through it if you use your hat. I know you can," encouraged Chisakimaku. She called the Spirit Cloud and jumped on the windowsill. The cloud passed through the seal with ease.

"I told you: I don't know how," said Jigglypuff, enunciating words.

"Of course you do. You just don't know it yet. It's happened once and it can happen again." Chisakimaku jumped on the cloud. "Now come on, chi."

"Fine…" Jigglypuff said regretfully. She jumped on the cloud and sat down. When she looked, she was disgusted and worried.

Everything outside was horrible (except for the oddly perfect sky). There was nothing but water for miles and half of the Manor was already underwater. Since it was raining so hard, it was a bit difficult to actually see the oddly perfect sky. Mostly what she saw were the heavy raindrops falling on top of the already risen waters. As the drops fell on the Seal, they made a small crackling sound and rolled down the side.

"You can use your hat to do countless things, in this case, to phase through objects, physical or otherwise," Chisakimaku said, looking up. The Spirit Cloud rose slowly as if on cue.

"Chisakimaku, what are you doing?" Jigglypuff was worried.

"Listen! Don't be so under-confident. If you have happiness, courage, and determination, the hat will come through, chi!"

Jigglypuff tried her hardest to focus. All she could think about was getting electrocuted by the Seal, and that thought wasn't helping. She had to get rid of it. She looked up at the Seal, which was about 200 feet away now, and closed her eyes. Many different thoughts raced through her mind. And her hat's glow changed color with each one.

The fight between her and DK.

The magic fountain.

Chisakimaku & Chisakumaki.

The fight against Volcanis.

Electri-City.

Kirby & the light show.

The magical hat.

Her destiny.

At this point, the hat glowed bright white, and slowly, Jigglypuff began to turn transparent. She grew a bit frightened.

"You're doing very well, chi!" Chisakimaku glowed bright white as well, also becoming transparent. Jigglypuff kept her eyes shut tight as a pickle jar lid and concentrated hard.

"Make this thing go faster."

Chisakimaku replied with a "Chi!" and the Spirit Cloud rose faster.

"We're almost there," she informed.

In 8 seconds, the two were at the surface of the water. In that little time, the entire Manor was underwater. Jigglypuff opened her eyes and looked around in shock. Besides the tops of skyscrapers in Electri-City, only water was visible. Yet it was still warm. The Spirit Hunter felt very weird. She looked around some more. She couldn't see the magic fountain, but she could see it shine. She wondered why it did that, the way it glowed like Jigglypuff's hat. But she would find out later.

"We need to find out where this thing is," said Jigglypuff.

"Let's try someplace watery, chi!"

Jigglypuff tried to think of a place where The Spirit of Water would like to dwell, as there are several stages that contain bodies of water (Princess Peach's Castle, Rainbow Cruise, Kongo Jungle, Jungle Japes, Great Bay, Green Greens, Fountain of Dreams, Corneria, and Big Blue). She had to choose one, and the decision was tough. But she barely had time to think. After a while, the waters began to feel like rapids.

"Great," said Jigglypuff, who could feel the tides picking up. "We need to go higher!"

"Gotcha! Chi!" The Spirit Cloud rose into the sky and rushed northward. They were going to the World Portals, the entrances to every level the Smashers fought on. It started to rain even more furiously than before. The water rose rapidly and waves began to form. It felt like a sun storm without the dark clouds, thunder, or lightning. Jigglypuff looked around again.

There was nothing to see (besides the fountain's glow). It rained so much that visibility was decreasing for the both of them.

"Now what?" yelled Jigglypuff.

"Don't worry! The Spirit Cloud has its own barrier, chi!" Jigglypuff was very relieved. Chisakimaku made a quick flash with her finger and the Spirit Cloud projected an invisible shield over them.

"Why didn't you use this yesterday when we crashed?" asked Jigglypuff.

Chisakimaku shrugged. Jigglypuff left it alone and looked straight ahead. They were almost at the World Portals. While she was looking in front, she was unaware of the danger behind her. A gigantic tsunami was rushing toward the cloud at extreme speed. Chisakimaku turned around.

"Uh, oh."

The tsunami swatted the two and the Spirit Cloud out of the sky and into the rapid-like waters below. Jigglypuff emerged from the waters, gasping for air. Chisakimaku floated above the surface and pulled Jigglypuff out. The Spirit Cloud was missing, and the World Portals (which floated) were right above them. (Normally, the Smashers would take elevators up to them. But they were flooded out, which was why the day's matches were postponed.)

"Looks like I'll have to carry you up. Hold on, chi!" Chisakimaku rose at moderate speed. Jigglypuff's arms were wet, but Chisakimaku was furry, so hanging on was easy. In addition, Jigglypuff was extremely light, so it was easy for Chisakimaku to carry her. Soon they reached the portals.

"Did you decide?" asked Chisakimaku.

"Great Bay!" The portal was right behind them, so Chisakimaku turned around and flew into the portal. The Spirit Cloud rose out of the water and followed close behind.

They were finally in!

* * *

After the three-second warp, Jigglypuff and Chisakimaku made it to the Great Bay, which was also flooded, though it wasn't raining. They landed in the waters and swam towards Turtle, the only visible floating object. They climbed on top and watched for The Spirit of Water. Nothing but water and the things under it; that's all they saw.

"Keep on your guard," said Chisakimaku. Jigglypuff was prepared as ever. Her hat glowed brightly and sent magical sparks out for protection.

"…Forget it."

A soft, strange wind blew across the surface of the water. It brought a strange feeling to both of them. Turtle began to dive back down to the depths. The Spirit Cloud descended and they both jumped onto it. Jigglypuff looked down at the water. It didn't seem right. Sure, it _looked_ alright, but it felt different. Fake. She couldn't see her reflection, which made the feeling worse.

Another strange wind blew across the water's surface, only stronger this time. Jigglypuff could sense it coming…but from where? She wouldn't have to wait much longer. The water made small ripples without the wind contributing. Jigglypuff stared hard into the water. Chisakimaku did the same. For some time, the water just kept producing ripples. It stopped suddenly.

"What happened?" Jigglypuff asked herself.

Boom!

That was all she heard before she went diving into the water. A geyser had burst out of the water so fast that it caught her and Chisakimaku off guard. Chisakimaku made it back to the cloud, but Jigglypuff wasn't so lucky. She tried to swim back to the surface, but with each stroke she seemed to be going _down._

_Aw, man,_ she thought. _Why can't I move up?_

She was definitely sinking several feet per second. She thought she was going to die. And Chisakimaku didn't do a thing. (Technically, she was banned from aiding the new Spirit Hunter in any physical or magical act except speech.) All she could do right now was hope that she knew what she was doing.

Jigglypuff was being dragged further underwater by the spirit. Her hat's light grew dimmer as she was dragged deeper. She tried puffing herself up to float to the surface, but the force was too powerful. She shook herself wildly to break free. The attempt was futile. She was losing consciousness now. Her loss of energy began to show when she stopped struggling. Her hat's light had virtually died out. But she saw something through the corner of her closing eyes that could help her greatly. All she needed was a few more seconds. She turned to her left and swam straight ahead, which was more successful than swimming upward. After a few seconds of swimming, she made it. As soon as she did, she blacked out, but her hat's light grew brighter instead of weaker. Out of the blue, she ascended quickly. The force was no longer felt. She reached the surface quickly.

She was lying on top of Turtle.

"Are you okay?" Chisakimaku called out, jumping on top of Turtle and rushing to Jigglypuff's aid.

Jigglypuff replied by coughing up some water.

"I think so," she said, clearing her throat.

Chisakimaku was relieved as ever.

"That was cheap!" Jigglypuff slowly stood up. "Show yourself!"

A female voice responded:

"You got lucky, puffball! You won't be for long!"

A figure began to form from the water in front of the two. Jigglypuff prepared for the worst. When the figure materialized, she was astonished. It had what appeared to be short hair and dark blue eyes. She had a petite human form but wore no clothes. She was made completely out of water and a small whirlpool covered the lower half of her body.

"Wow," said Jigglypuff.

"She is one of the only Smash Spirits in human-like form," said Chisakimaku.

"Okay."

"That's right! I am Abunai Mizu, The Spirit of Water. As you can see, I'm one of the strongest of the Smash Spirits."

"Yeah, I know. Both you and Volcanis have something in common: you almost killed me."

"Yep! Now your luck ends…"

At that moment, some of the water rose, formed a large hand, and grabbed Jigglypuff. It pulled her toward Mizu. She smirked as she grabbed Jigglypuff on her own.

"What a weakling…"

She filled Jigglypuff with water and suspended her above Turtle. Jigglypuff had trouble doing anything, including breathing. Mizu kept her suspended for a few seconds.

"Cut it out! She doesn't deserve to be tortured! Leave her alone, chi!" This was Chisakimaku's only defense. Mizu looked at her sharply.

"Shut up! You can't do a thing about it, can you?"

"You very well know that, Mizu…" Chisakimaku lowered her head in regret.

Mizu chuckled as the hand grabbed Jigglypuff again. This time it squeezed all of the water out of her and threw her on top of Turtle. She just laid there, motionless. Not only was her water squeezed out of her, but she lost a lot of air as well.

"You have to get up!" urged Chisakimaku.

Jigglypuff wasn't unconscious, just weakened. Her hat's light remained the same. She got up very slowly. She could hardly stand on her own two feet.

"You're tougher than I imagined," said Mizu, a bit surprised..

"Likewise," responded Jigglypuff, weakly.

"You're doing well. Keep it up," cheered Chisakimaku. Jigglypuff turned around slowly.

"I didn't _do_ anything…"

"You're surviving, chi."

"Hooray…"

"Okay, you're wasting my destruction time, so I won't put this off any longer," said a bored Mizu.

It started to rain.

"What's this gonna do to me?" asked Jigglypuff, looking at Mizu as if she was an idiot.

"Jigglypuff! Take shelter fast!" Chisakimaku yelled, jumping on the Spirit Cloud.

"Heed her words," said Mizu.

Jigglypuff was confused. The first rain didn't injure her at all; she only had trouble seeing. Why was this rain so seemingly dangerous? She did not want to wait and find out. But the rain came down harder.

"Jigglypuff, I'm warning you! Get on!" Chisakimaku turned transparent. Jigglypuff decided to just forget about it and get on the cloud. But it was too late. Just when she was about to get on, she felt a sharp sting in her back.

Then on her foot.

_What was that,_ she thought. She looked down and noticed that her foot was bleeding. The same with her back.

"The Needle Rain…Jigglypuff…" Chisakimaku said.

Mizu grinned.

"This isn't fair…ow!" Jigglypuff had a small cut on both cheeks.

Screw this. She ran and jumped on the cloud, getting cut several times on the way. She sat down and Chisakimaku immediately raised the barrier.

"Any longer and you would've been stabbed to death," said Chisakimaku.

Jigglypuff didn't respond. She was examining her cuts. Most of them weren't too deep.

Mizu yawned.

"Are you punks ready yet?"

"What does it look like?" the two responded.

"Fine! I'll just strike now!" Mizu sped toward the cloud. It moved just in time.

"Jigglypuff, in order to defeat this thing, you have to turn transparent again! I'll keep dodging Mizu, chi!" The Spirit Cloud dodged another one of Mizu's charges.

"Right…" Jigglypuff closed her eyes. Mizu began attacking with a barrage of water blasts. Chisakimaku dodged them all perfectly.

"This isn't working," Mizu said to herself. "Let's try this." She raised her hand quickly.

"We're in trouble, chi," Chisakimaku said coldly.

"I'm almost done," replied Jigglypuff.

"Well, hang on tight!"

Jigglypuff held onto the cloud preparing for the worst. A geyser, much like the one that had attacked them before, tried to attack them again. Chisakimaku was ready this time, and dodged it.

"I'm sick of this crap!" Mizu was furious and frustrated. She raised both of her hands.

"Uh-oh," said Chisakimaku. The cloud moved forward very fast. She blinked, and there was a geyser right in front of her. She stopped immediately.

"Done yet?"

"Not yet."

The geyser did not descend. Instead, another geyser appeared behind the two.

"She's trapping us!" said Chisakimaku. She tried to leave from the side, but there were even more geysers.

They started to close in.

"I think I'm done!" said Jigglypuff.

"Good! On my count, we'll jump, chi!"

"No time!" Jigglypuff jumped out with Chisakimaku following close behind. The Spirit Cloud quickly retreated into the sky.

Jigglypuff landed on the surface of the water in front of Mizu.

"Well, well. If it isn't the Invisiballoon! How will you fight if you're transparent?" Mizu said derisively.

Jigglypuff's hat glowed a whitish-blue.

"Like this."

She raised a glowing arm.

"Oh." Mizu said.

In a split-second, all of the water around her froze solid, including the rain. And of course, Mizu.

"How…wait."

"Hurry! Seal the spirit!" shouted Chisakimaku, floating above the ice.

With those words, all of the ice shattered, and was vacuumed into the hat. It took a little while, but that was it. The Spirit of Water was defeated. Jigglypuff landed on top of Turtle's head. She petted it and looked up at the sunny sky.

"Jigglypuff, are you okay?" asked Chisakimaku.

"I'll be fine when we leave. The portals heal…but how did I _do_ that?"

"Your willpower is growing, chi!"

"Okay…let's go."

The Spirit Cloud descended and they both jumped onto it. They left Great Bay.

* * *

On the way back to the Manor, Jigglypuff looked around at the now beautiful scenery, completely restored. She didn't care how it happened as long as everything was okay now.

The cloud floated into Jigglypuff's window. She was surprised to find Kirby in her room.

"Kirby?"

"Oh, hi Jigglypuff!"

"What's going on? Why are you in here?"

"Well, I figured that you'd gone to fight another spirit, so I locked your door and waited. I knew they'd get worried if they knew you left."

"Pretty smart."

Kirby slightly blushed.

"Thanks. Oh, is that her?"

Jigglypuff nodded.

"Kirby, this is Chisakimaku. Chisakimaku, Kirby."

Kirby shook Chisakimaku's hand. He felt her warm and colorful fur.

"Hello," Kirby said.

"Hi! I'm a rainbow spirit, chi!" replied Chisakimaku with a merry tone. She made a rainbow appear to wrap itself around Kirby like a snake. Kirby was amazed.

"Okay, I'm going back to sleep," said Jigglypuff, crawling into her bed.

"See you later, chi!" said Chisakimaku as the rainbow followed her to the cloud. She rose into the sky.

"See ya, " said Kirby as he left the room. Jigglypuff nodded and went to sleep for several hours.

_There. Done. Now…bye._


	7. The Fountain's Secret

_Damn. Almost 3 months._

Chapter 7: The Fountain's Secret

When Jigglypuff awoke from her nap, the first thing she decided to do was, surprisingly, eat. She walked downstairs and to the kitchen, where she found only a few fellow Smashers; Pichu, Roy, Ness, DK, and Peach.

"Hey, Jigglypuff! You were knocked out!" Pichu said.

"Um, where's everyone else?" our heroine asked out of curiosity.

"They went out. Some of them are fighting," said Peach.

"Oh. Do we have any food?"

"Uh…yeah…" they all said, recalling Jigglypuff's most important meal. She dug into the refrigerator that read "Snacks" (yes, they have refrigerators for each meal) and took out a slice of cake. It was devil's food cake with chocolate icing on a plastic plate. Of course, what's cake without something to wash it down with? She poured herself a glass of milk.

DK, who had recovered from his banana incident, was supposed to be battling Jigglypuff again the next day. He didn't want to get her fired up, so he just kept quiet. She ate at a normal speed, kinda like the way Samus ate, though she wanted to hurry up.

"Man, that was some weird weather! How did it stop so fast?" Ness asked.

"I don't know, but I'm relieved," Roy responded.

"Yeah! Me too!" Pichu exclaimed.

Jigglypuff kept on eating in silence.

"What do you think, Jigglypuff?" asked Peach. Because someone was going to.

"Hm? Oh, yeah. Really something." Jigglypuff wasn't paying much attention.

"Oh, well. Guess it was just one of those weird things," DK concluded. Jigglypuff was done eating and had thrown away her plate and put her glass and fork in the sink.

"How come you're so quiet?" a certain psychic kid asked.

"I'm just anxious," Jigglypuff said.

"Anxious? For what?"

Jigglypuff was already gone.

* * *

Jigglypuff looked up at the dark, starry sky. This reminded her of the night of the light show. She inhaled deeply as she walked to the park. There was a sweet scent floating in the air. She inhaled again and received the same scent.

"It must be coming from that fountain," she deduced.

As she approached the place so desired, the scent became stronger…and more enticing. This fountain seemed to hold so many secrets. Jigglypuff was going to discover them, each of them, no matter what. They held a strong possibility of helping her in the future. When she got to the fountain, it was emitting a yellow glow. A yellowish-gold glow.

The color of honey.

Jigglypuff's hat glowed along with the fountain, meaning that the two were somehow connected. She was puzzled, but undeterred. She looked into the fountain's water. She saw not only herself, but also a flashback of the day she met Chisakimaku. She could even see the spirits being freed. (At this, Jigglypuff shook her head in regret.) She could see her sorrow, Chisakimaku appearing; she could see everything.

She couldn't help but wonder why.

"What is with this thing? And what is it doing to my hat?" she said to herself. The fountain stopped glowing, as did the hat. When the glow vanished, the smell went with it. Jigglypuff took off the hat and examined it.

"Hmm…maybe thought triggers it…"

She began to think about the monsoon that happened earlier. The water began to show a clear image of trees and grass underwater.

"That's it!" she cheered. "I've figured that part out. But…there's more to this thing. This could answer some questions I have…like Chisakimaku. What's her deal, anyway?"

She looked into the water, which was pristine and image-less, save for her reflection. She sighed deeply. Then, she realized that her reflection was fading away. The more she thought about Chisakimaku, the faster the fading occurred. Slightly freaked out, she quickly backed away.

"What was that all about?" She checked to see if she was okay. She wasn't.

She was fading away all on her own. She was about to scream, but decided not to, though she was terrified. Instead, she just let it happen. Maybe her questions were about to be answered. Maybe Chisakimaku wouldn't be such an enigma anymore. She took a deep breath and hoped for the best. After that, there was only darkness.

* * *

When she regained her sight, she found herself in the same exact area she was previously standing. The fountain was still there. The bench was also still there. The overhead light was not still there. She looked behind her. The Smash Bros. Manor was gone as well. She wondered what else could've been missing, and what could be taking its place.

"Electri-City…"

She ran up the nearby hill and found a small village. It was small, yet it was buzzing with people. These "people" were actually rabbits; all of them had yellow fur of different shades. What really individualized these creatures were their hats. Each rabbit had a hat of different color, pattern, size, and material. The entire village seemed to be covered by a protective rainbow. Jigglypuff had never seen anything like this before.

She had no choice but to investigate.

When she reached the village's border, she noticed it looked bigger than it once seemed. There was a welcome sign that read:

"Welcome to our little village! This is a friendly place, where peace showers the land, and all are welcome. Have fun!"

"Okay…now how am I supposed to get in?"

She thought about this for a few seconds before attempting to go through it. Surprisingly (to her), she went right through with no trouble.

The village was nothing she expected. There were many plazas with rabbits selling things such as jewelry, food (all fruits and vegetables), and hats. There was a lot of commotion as she walked through. She tried greeting some of the citizens, but they walked right by her.

"I thought everyone was welcome. What am I, a ghost or something?"

She froze at her own words. She immediately tried to feel herself…but couldn't. She wished she hadn't brought up that issue.

"What the hell happened? I don't have my hat, so it can't be that. Oh well. I really should focus on finding Chisakimaku. At least nothing can stop me."

She began to levitate, for some reason.

"Am I flying?"

She began to move forward at a high speed. That answered her question.

"I think the fountain is taking me to her," she said while houses rushed by her. She spent her entire time looking down, in case she saw anything interesting. Eventually, she did; a giant statue of what seemed to be a rabbit princess.

The rabbit was Chisakimaku.

"No way! That can't be…she was a…wow…"

About 17 seconds later, she began to slow. She landed in a grassy meadow just outside of the village. It was abundant in flowers, some of which shined. The meadow was relatively larger than the village. In it was Chisakumaki along with someone else. The other person looked like a little boy, looking no older than 11. He had light blue hair, a red, long sleeved shirt, light blue pants, pale skin, and (get this) a yellow/green/orange pair of shoes with orange buckles. He also had a halo above his head and short blue and yellow wings.

"Well, he's not human," Jigglypuff said for no reason.

"It's really frustrating…you know, with all of the attention and responsibilities of being a princess. You never get any 'you' time," Chisakumaki told the kid. "It's crazy."

The kid nodded.

"This is the only way to get away. When will they understand? I may be a princess, but I'm still young! Now a life like yours, that'd be…"

The kid sighed sadly and occupied his sight with the flowers below him (they were both sitting). Chisakumaki moved closer to him for comfort.

"Sorry, Sukama."

"You don't know what it's like. All this time not knowing who your own parents are. Living your life shunned by many and greeted by few…Wishing that the so-called blessing of life was replaced by the curse of non-existence." He started to cry.

"And I thought these guys were friendly…" Jigglypuff sighed.

"Those spirits…will pay…" Sukama said, clenching his fist.

"You're right. Those spirits _will_ pay…when they come here. If they come here…I promise," Chisakumaki said, kissing Sukama on the cheek.

"Tsk. I knew it," Jigglypuff said, smiling.

"Thank you. I'll never forget that…" Sukama said, also smiling. Chisakumaki blushed gently.

"Why does this remind me of me and Kirby?"

Sukama rose, looking at the moon. "I better leave…"

"Don't go yet! The night is so beautiful…" Chisakumaki pleaded.

"I have to. My…folks…get worried easily. But before I go, I need to give you something."

Sukama stretched out his finger, and there was a bright, red light glowing on its tip. With that finger, he made a small red horizontal circle that hovered in mid-air. Both Jigglypuff and Chisakumaki paid close attention. Sukama's finger shone orange, and he made a slightly bigger circle under the red one. He did the same with yellow, green, blue, and purple until he had created…

"My hat!" Jigglypuff exclaimed.

"This is yours. It contains mystical energies that can only be released by the pure of heart, of course…which is why you deserve it." He put the hat on Chisakumaki's head. It glowed brighter than Jigglypuff had ever seen it glow before.

"_So this is how it started…_" she thought.

"I'll cherish this forever!" Chisakumaki squealed, joyous as ever. Sukama chuckled, and then flew away quickly. Astonishingly quick.

"He's fast," Jigglypuff said as he flew away. Chisakumaki was just staring at Sukama's now faint figure, with glistening eyes.

"He's so great…"

Jigglypuff knew that feeling well. As soon as the feeling was about to return, the world began to fade.

"Wait! I still want to know more! I'm not finished y…"

* * *

When the darkness cleared, Jigglypuff was back in the park. It was still night, and the fountain was normal. She looked back at the Manor. Every light was turning off, one by one.

"That's why I left when I did!" she cried out, running back home as fast as she could. For some reason, Chisakimaku was in the area on the Spirit Cloud.

"Need a lift, chi?"

Jigglypuff responded by jumping on the cloud, which promptly took the two to Jigglypuff's room. Jigglypuff went inside through the window while Chisakimaku stayed on the cloud.

"Thanks…" Jigglypuff said with a sigh.

"No problem, chi!"

Jigglypuff was about to go to sleep, but she had to tell her first.

"Chisakimaku, I figured out-"

"I know."

_So much for that._

"How come you always know stuff?"

"It's a gift, chi!"

"Anyway, how come you didn't tell me you had a um…what was it again...? A boyfriend! Yeah!"

"You have a tendency to find things out on your own. Plus, I don't see anyone who knows about your infatuation with Kirby, chi!"

"Good…good point."

"I know he's still searching for me…He vowed he'd find me. I still wish him luck. Wherever he is."

"Me too. I think you should leave now." Jigglypuff turned off her light and jumped into bed.

"Tomorrow, chi! Oh, and expect an earthquake when you wake up. Bye!"

With that, she was gone into the sky.

"An eathquake? Figures." Suddenly, the door busted open and there stood Fox, which was surprising to her.

"Peach asked me to check up on you. Are you alright?"

"I'm fine."

"Good. Well…till tomorrow." Fox closed the door and went to his room to sleep. "She's been acting weird lately."

Jigglypuff turned off her light and went to sleep. Her hat was still on, and the dim light did nothing to alter her sleep. Which she needed, because tomorrow, the third battle would ensue…

_That took a while. Well…uh…_


	8. Solid As A Rock

_Because I have nauseatingly high hopes…here's the third spirit battle._

Chapter 8: Solid As A Rock

Jigglypuff woke up at 8:30 a.m. This time, for some reason, she awoke on the floor, face down.

"How'd that happen?" she said, yawning. Her first action was to, as of yesterday, look outside for any abnormalities. She went to the window and saw only the ordinary. Just the green grass below and the blue, cloud-filled sky and the yellow sun above.

"For now, I might as well relax. At least until the 'earthquake' starts."

She went to the bathroom (which was unoccupied) and washed her face. Then she went to the kitchen (which was also unoccupied) and poured herself a glass of milk. She wasn't too hungry this morning, just thirsty.

Soon, she noticed that her milk made a small ripple, as if something big was coming her way. Instead of leaving immediately or telling the other sleepers about it, she decided to wait. Taking a sip of her milk, Jigglypuff went to the Royal Room.

"Strange. Why's everybody still asleep?" She took another sip of her milk as she sat on the couch.

"Hey."

Jigglypuff jumped up, a bit startled. She looked to her left, and there was Chisakumaki, sitting as calm as a cloud.

"You really need to stop doing that!" she exclaimed, remembering that she'd been startled previously.

"I didn't do anything. I was just sitting here, minding my busi-"

"YOU SCARED ME!"

"Uh…oh, right, sorry."

"What are you doing here, anyway?"

"Haven't seen you in a good while. Just making sure you're still alive."

"What?"

"I'm joking. Or am I?"

"Stop that!"

The entire world started to shake violently and suddenly. This shaking caused Jigglypuff's glass to slip from her grip and shatter on the ground. Also, everyone woke up. A bunch of screaming came from some of the Smashers upstairs, and it seemed like glass was breaking everywhere. This chaos only took seconds.

"We gotta go! Kirby!"

"Jigglypuff, where are you?" Kirby yelled from upstairs.

"I'm down here!"

Kirby jumped from the balcony down to the Royal Room all heroic-like. "You okay?"

"I'm fine, but what about everybody else?"

"I think they can hold out on their own. Who's she?" Kirby pointed to Chisakumaki.

"Not now! Let's go!" Chisakumaki said.

All three of them bolted out the door. Outside wasn't as normal as it was a short time ago. There were boulders shooting out of canyon-sized cracks that streamed throughout the landscape. Distant cities were being sucked underground. The only undamaged areas were the ground the three were standing on and the Smash Central Park where the magic fountain was located. The fountain still had no shine, nor did Jigglypuff's hat.

"What's going on?" asked Kirby, a bit puzzled.

"It's Rock Solid, the Spirit of Earth. He has the ability to alter the movements of earth as well as the form. We have to find his base of operations," informed Chisakumaki.

"Found," said Jigglypuff, sure of herself. Chisakumaki yelled "Chi!" and the Spirit Cloud descended from above. She and Jigglypuff jumped on board.

"Kirby, you should stay here. It might- hell, it _will_ be dangerous," warned Jigglypuff.

"Just come back home safely, okay?" said Kirby, worried.

"Don't worry. I'll be fine," Jigglypuff re-insured with a nod. The Spirit Cloud took off like a rocket, even leaving a blue stream behind it.

"Good luck," Kirby said, waving.

"So, where do you think Rock Solid is right now?" asked Chisakumaki as she and Jigglypuff rushed toward the World Portals.

"Well, Pokemon Stadium is the best guess because of the rock field. So we'll head there," the Spirit Hunter suggested. Chisakumaki was a little impressed by Jigglypuff's newfound drive and critical thinking skills, even though the thinking right then was relatively simple. Needless to say, this thinking would help them both a lot in the future. Just 5 more left, and then…

"Do you think we're safe in here?" asked Jigglypuff.

"Sure, as long as we keep moving. We also have our seal on, but if anything happens, we'll definitely be ready," Chisakumaki said with a thumb up. Jigglypuff's remaining skepticism became worse when her hat began to flash brown.

"We better hurry!"

"Why? We're making great progress as is. What's wrong?"

"Look. Doesn't this mean something to you?" She showed Chisakumaki her hat, still flashing brown.

"Just great" was all Chisakumaki said.

"What's gonna happen to us now?" wondered Jigglypuff. She would've continued wondering, but a boulder struck the Spirit Cloud. "Let's go!"

"Right!"

The cloud began to move faster and faster. If you were there, you'd be able to see a moving blue blur followed by several large rocks.

"We should reach the World Portals soon. It's weird we didn't reach them already," said Chisakumaki.

Another boulder struck, this time knocking the two off course. They quickly regained control, but soon came another boulder strike that almost broke the seal.

"We gotta lose these things!" said Jigglypuff.

"I think we should try to lose _those_ instead."

Jigglypuff turned around, and there were 3 giant-sized rocks headed straight for them at a speed slightly higher than theirs. The Spirit Cloud made a loop and dodged all 3 rocks.

"How close was that?" Jigglypuff said with a sigh. Unfortunately, the rocks seemed to be homing the Spirit Cloud. They ricocheted and headed for the two once again. "Figures."

"Hold on! We're heading down!" yelled Chisakumaki.

"Got it!" Jigglypuff held on tightly to the soft cloud. As soon as the boulders neared them, the cloud rushed downward, into a canyon. This, of course, meant that they had to dodge many more rocks than the previous three, which still tailed them. Hopefully these rocks would collide with other rocks and not them.

"Any way we can destroy these things?" asked Jigglypuff.

"You tell me," said Chisakumaki.

The Spirit Cloud bobbed and weaved all throughout the canyon, dodging rocks from below every few seconds. They went north, the direction the World Portals were in.

"We should get there any second now," said Jigglypuff.

"I see them!" Chisakumaki said, pointing ahead.

"Well, then…"

The Spirit Cloud sped up. Pretty soon, the boulders either didn't affect them or missed because they were moving so fast. They busted right through some rocks with no trouble. After about 7 seconds of this, the Spirit Cloud rose out of the canyon, and the Pokemon Stadium portal was right in front of them.

"This is it. The third spirit. I hope…" Jigglypuff said to herself.

"I thought you said you were sure of yourself!" yelled Chisakumaki. Jigglypuff only sighed. Chisakumaki calmed down, remembering that no mind is perfect. "Here's to hoping!"

They sped through the portal with their fingers crossed (in Jigglypuff's case, her fingers were figurative), hoping for destruction.

* * *

When the warp had ended, Jigglypuff and Chisakumaki found themselves high above the Pokemon Stadium, which was already in its rock stage. There was, of course, no audience in the bleachers because they were severely cracked and broken. The lights above and below them were dimmed, and there were no fireworks in the background. The place was barren, lifeless.

"Okay. You go down there and wait for the spirit. I'll stay here and cheer you on. Good luck," said Chisakumaki in somewhat of a whisper. The seal was lowered.

"Naturally," said Jigglypuff, jumping onto the small rock field. Chisakumaki watched and waited for an attack. "I know Rock Solid will get me by surprise. The other two did the same thing. But I'll be ready this time." She began to walk around in small circles, waiting for the spirit to emerge from wherever.

"What's taking so long?" Chisakumaki wondered. Jigglypuff had stopped walking after a few minutes.

"This is taking way too long. But I can't let my guard down. Not for one second."

Little did Jigglypuff realize that she had failed when she said that. She tried to move again, but could not. She looked at her feet. They were buried in the ground.

"What the-? That's just brilliant." Then she realized something worse. She was sinking. "Oh, man!" She began to attempt to struggle free. Chisakumaki quickly noticed this and jumped down to help her.

"Jigglypuff, you have to stop moving!"

"Do you know how hard that is?" She struggled again.

"…Yeah."

"Oh, right."

"Concentrate."

"I'll try."

Jigglypuff closed her eyes tightly and stopped squirming altogether. She was still sinking, but much more slowly.

"Now try and phase. For you, it shouldn't be so hard now."

"All right." Jigglypuff's voice was a bit strained. Her hat finally began to emit a glow. It glowed, of course, bright white, and Jigglypuff began to turn transparent. This hadn't happened in about a day and a half.

"Now you must learn a new skill: flight."

"Do you really…think I can do that?" The ground had almost devoured Jigglypuff's mouth.

"Of course! The Spirit Hunter needs to have more than one ability. Now, do you remember the day you went to the city on the Spirit Cloud?"

Jigglypuff clung tightly to that memory. Even in her dreams, she thought about it constantly. It was her best day.

"…Sure…" she said faintly.

"Picture it. Picture you on the Spirit Cloud. Picture you and your emotions and your soul take flight, and you will too."

Jigglypuff thought hard and fast about the ride to Electri-City. She thought about what she saw and how good it felt. The beauty. She felt like she was in heaven for that moment. Suddenly, her hat flashed a rainbow color, and then glowed sky-blue. She began to rise.

"Come on, you're almost out…"

Jigglypuff had only narrowly avoided suffocation, just like last time. As she rose, so did her spirits. She felt that this battle would be a piece of cake. Of course, she was wrong.

"Hurry…"

Finally Jigglypuff was freed and was able to get rid of all of the cramps that she had.

"How do you feel?" Chisakumaki asked, smiling.

"I feel…so free. It feels great!" Jigglypuff spoke while moving in the air freely alongside Chisakumaki.

"You have a job to do," Chisakumaki reminded.

"Yeah."

The two's waiting ended. They both heard a loud, gruff voice.

"Not again! You've slipped away from us for the last time, Spirit Hunter!"

Some of the rocks on the stage began crumbling up and disappearing or falling into the darkness below. A figure began to form where the rocks crumbled. The stadium rumbled and the two moved back to the edge of the platform. The ground in front of them began to flatten, and several large rocks began combining before their eyes. Broad feet were formed. Large arms and hands were formed. A midsection was created. At the high top, a face was carved into one large boulder. Yes, this was Rock Solid.

And Jigglypuff was kinda scared.

"Why didn't you tell me that thing was so big?" Jigglypuff asked, gripping Chisakumaki's dress tightly, yet still looking at the monstrosity. She whimpered slightly.

"As you've already concluded, I am Rock Solid. I'm the most destructive of the Smash Spirits," the 175-foot-tall spirit said.

"…You…won't be around for very long!" Rock Solid's height made it hard for Jigglypuff to concentrate.

"Jigglypuff, do you know how to fly?" asked Chisakumaki.

"Let me see…" Jigglypuff tried to ascend.

"Hey! Don't ignore me!" Rock Solid yelled, collapsing a bleacher with one of his massive hands.

"Give us a sec!" yelled Chisakumaki. Rock Solid growled.

Jigglypuff continued her ascension attempts. She pictured herself on the Spirit Cloud again, but she flew forward rather than the desired upward. She decided to try another picture. Underwater, during the battle with Abunai Mizu. Being pulled down deeper, deeper, about to perish. Reaching for her last hope, Turtle. Rising to the surface.

At that point of picturing, her hat shone a very bright sky-blue. She rose a few feet, and then stopped. Her hat's glow lingered.

"Good work," complimented Chisakumaki.

"Finally! I can fly! This'll make the battle so much easier!" Jigglypuff didn't care that her opponent was still impatiently waiting.

"HURRY UP! I have a schedule to keep!" he roared.

"All right! Just shut up and make your move already!" Jigglypuff snapped, as annoyed as Rock Solid was.

"You're gonna regret this, puffball!" He raised his colossal arm high into the sky.

"Better watch it, Jigglypuff," said Chisakumaki.

"Got it." Jigglypuff felt a slight rumble in the atmosphere, like the one she felt early that morning. "Not again…"

"You better prepare yourself, Spirit Hunter! You're going down!"

Jigglypuff looked up at Rock Solid's gigantic hand (it was twice the size of Master Hand). There was a big ball hovering above it that seemed to be getting bigger by the second. It was brimming with an evil aura that got darker as the ball got bigger.

"That's not good news…"

"Jigglypuff, you really should destroy that thing…"

"What? That? Are you...? It's too big!"

"Nothing is too big for you! I neutralized it with little trouble."

"Can you tell me how?"

Silence. To be fair, it _had_ been a while.

"Fine…I'll see what I can do on my own, then."

Jigglypuff flew directly at Rock Solid, almost charging at him. She didn't want to fully charge because of the fear that she'd fly right into an attack. Assaults wouldn't help her at all.

"Now…feel the pain! Surrender or else!" Rock Solid bellowed.

"That thing. I know it has a weak point. Where is it?" Jigglypuff searched and searched for any types of discoloration or anything distinct on the ball. She couldn't find a thing. "Maybe below…"

"Oh no you don't!"

Rock Solid's body split up into what it was originally based on: boulders. They chased her at high speed.

"Uh-oh." Though she knew that the rocks were coming from the front, she also knew that she had to neutralize that energy ball somehow, which was still growing without Rock's support. The aura also flourished. She had to go for below.

"Those look more persistent than the other ones," Chisakumaki said to herself.

"These things are fast!" Jigglypuff said, flying for dear life.

"You'll never reach my ball if you're this slow, Spirit Hunter!" Rock Solid's head led the herd of boulders. It was what Jigglypuff was trying to primarily avoid.

"Gotta…go…up…" The energy ball was right above her. She boosted up and into the ball's flaw: a gaping hole.

"Almost there. Come on Jigglypuff…" Like Chisakumaki said, she would be cheering.

"Ha!" Rock Solid stopped moving. "You think it'll be that easy?" He suddenly sped up, flew around Jigglypuff, and stopped in front of her, halting her ascension. The rocks and the head began revolving wildly around her.

"No…not now…" said a worried Chisakumaki.

"Just great." Another cyclone for Jigglypuff. Quick, inescapable, and very painful. The inescapable part caused her to be struck hard by a rock. Her hat's light almost went out. "_This isn't good…_" she thought.

The rocks began to close in. "I knew it."

"This is the end for you! Let's see how far you can fly, puffball! Ha ha ha!" Rock Solid was hitting Jigglypuff with himself. Each hit brought about the blinking of the hat.

"Ow! What is with-ow!-these spirits-ow!-and tornadoes? Ow!" Jigglypuff cried. "I gotta escape…" A boulder cut her face. The hat's light got a little dimmer. "Oh, come on! Ow!" A boulder had cut the back of her left ear.

"What's she going to do now? She's trapped…" Chisakumaki sighed sadly. She clenched her fists. "If only _I_ could do something."

A gust of wind. A shadowed figure flew past Chisakumaki at high speed and headed for the cyclone. Jigglypuff saw the figure as well, but the rocks obstructed her view a bit. "What's that?" she wondered, holding her cut ear.

The figure threw some sort of ring at the rocks. It sliced right through each and every spinning rock, including Rock Solid's head. And as they were being sliced, they stopped moving in midair.

"Go. Now," the figure said. Jigglypuff nodded and slowly rose into the energy ball, blood dripping slightly.

"Hold it! You…" Rock Solid would've continued to yell, but every rock slowly split in half and fell to the platform. As Jigglypuff entered the ball, he chuckled weakly to himself. His head had been split from left to right; only his mouth moved.

"What a stupid fool. That energy ball wasn't meant to be fired. It was bait. When she enters…she'll be gone forever! Idiot!"

Jigglypuff was almost inside the ball when she stopped.

"Why'd she stop?" Chisakumaki asked. The figure landed right beside her and stared at her. It came into focus. She cried tears of joy. "Sukama!" She hugged him tearfully. "You finally came back!"

Jigglypuff was thinking about the ball. "Something tells me that this still won't be easy. Once I get in…hmm…" Something clicked. "I got it! This battle is over!" She immediately went inside. She could hear a low, soothing hum. She closed her eyes and the ball began shrinking quickly. She inhaled, exhaled, and threw her hat upwards. She fell out of the hole and slipped into unconsciousness. The hat shone a very bright bluish-gray and changed the ball's color to that.

"Jigglypuff!" Chisakumaki called out. Sukama rushed to catch her.

"Damn! It didn't work! It's not over yet! You still have 4 others!" Rock Solid yelled weakly.

The ball exploded and a sparkling wind picked up Rock. The wind carried him (and the arm that supported the ball) all around the stadium, traveling like a snake, slithering through the air and climbing.

"To hell with you, Spirit Hunter!" He would've called out again, but his head dissolved into big sparkling chunks, as well as the rest of his body. The wind became a sparkling updraft, and whatever was left of Rock Solid was gone. The wind became the hat once more. The third spirit was sealed.

Sukama, who was still holding Jigglypuff, caught the hat, which glowed dark brown and then stopped. He flew back to the Spirit Cloud. Jigglypuff still bled and had some bruises, but the portal would fix that.

"Even though the battle was short, it took a lot out of her," stated Chisakumaki.

"Yeah. Let's let her sleep," said Sukama.

"And let's get out of here," added Chisakumaki.

The Pokemon Stadium still lied in ruin. It was on the verge of collapsing on itself. Did anyone care? Well, there were more important things to worry about for the three. Three down. Four to go.

* * *

When Jigglypuff came to, she found herself still on the Spirit Cloud with her hat right beside her. Her wounds were, of course, fully healed. She was high above the Smash Bros. Manor at around 12:12.

"You're awake," Chisakumaki said with a smile.

"Yeah. Hey, wait a- what happened?" Jigglypuff sat up. "I remember taking my hat off and the ball…then what?"

"I saved you."

Jigglypuff instantly turned around. Sukama smiled.

"Hey! I remember you! You're that…angel kid I saw in the fountain!"

"You do remember. I am Sukama, Jiji Eieo."

Jigglypuff was clueless as to what the last two "words" meant. To her, it didn't matter enough to ask.

"So that's your name…nice to meet you in person!" She shook Sukama's hand.

"My pleasure." Sukama chuckled.

"Oh, right…he finally found you, Chisakumaki. You must be so happy…"

She was right. Chisakumaki still cried a bit. "Yes…it's been way too long…we're finally together again, after 700 years…"

"The feeling is mutual. Trust me." Sukama gave Chisakumaki another comforting hug.

"It's been too long! Why did I have to leave you?" she cried out, still joyous.

"It'll be fine. Don't worry so much," said Sukama.

Jigglypuff looked at the two and smiled. Soon she switched her focus to the scenery. Everything was once again mysteriously back to normal. The cities she could see were back in place, so were the trees. There wasn't a crack in this grassy countryside-like view of hers. It was like time rewound. It was as weird as it was relieving. "So…now what?" She still looked at the scenery.

"We should separate. Me and Chisakumaki…well, we have a _lot_ to catch up on," decided Sukama. The Spirit Cloud quickly descended to Jigglypuff's window, which was still open.

"Later, right?" asked Jigglypuff, jumping through her window. Sukama nodded and the cloud flew away.

She looked at the clock on her dresser. 18 minutes had passed. That left Jigglypuff enough time to do whatever she pleased. Whatever wasn't too much, though. The magic fountain still had no glow, and there would be many conversations and maybe even debates about what had happened earlier that she'd likely be entangled in. The only things to really do was talk to Kirby (which he'd greatly appreciate) or fight, something she hoped for. But first things first.

Jigglypuff was hungry and needed some food. So she headed for the kitchen, where Pichu, Mario, Mr. Game & Watch, Link, and Marth already occupied.

"This is just too freaky! It's like we're all in a dream or something!" exclaimed Pichu, hyper.

"I'm used to stuff like this," said Link, "but I agree, this is very strange."

They were all getting lunch. Things had definitely calmed since earlier.

"Hey, guys," Jigglypuff greeted, walking into the kitchen.

"Jigglypuff! Good to see you again!" said Mario.

"You've been disappearing a lot lately. Where do you go? Are you hiding?" asked Marth. Jigglypuff was completely and utterly stumped. She couldn't think of a single answer. She had to counter the question. She quickly looked around and noticed something she could use well.

"Why do you have the Sword of Seals?"

"Uh…" was Marth's reply.

"It was a dare," said Pichu.

"Oh, really?"

"Yeah! Roy asked Marth if he wanted to do a dare, and he said yes. The dare was to see who could hit Sandbag the farthest in the Home-Run Contest. Marth lost! The result: a sword switch for one day! Too bad they don't have any matches! That would've been something!"

"It's true…" Marth said, shaking his head with his face in his palm.

"Yeah, we'll see how that goes." Jigglypuff noticed that Mr. Game & Watch was getting flat, black food from the "Lunch" fridge. "They finally found it?"

"You missed a lot," Link said, looking out the kitchen window.

"Master Hand got it a few hours ago, after the earthquake," said Mario. "It's much better than manually slicing food into ultra-ultra-thin slices."

"Speaking of missing stuff, you have another match against DK," informed Marth.

"Yes! A rematch! I know I'll win this time!" Since defeating three spirits, her confidence was almost at its peak. But still, it _was_ DK, meaning she still had doubts, but she wasn't deterred at all. She went into the "Lunch" fridge and took out a box of Pokemon food. The others got their lunches too: another box of Pokemon food for Pichu, a leftover bowl of ravioli for Mario, a turkey & cheese sandwich for Marth, and some baked chicken legs for Link. They each went upstairs to various rooms with their food. Jigglypuff ate in the dining room and waited for Kirby. She ate some pellets, then looked up at the red & gold painted ceiling and sighed heavily.

"When is this match gonna start, anyway?" She ate some more pellets. "And where is Kirby? He doesn't usually go out this early. He has the late matches…Where could he have gone to?" She ate some more pellets and looked outside. There was nothing of interest. The sun was shining, the clouds were going by at a normal rate, the birds were singing…It was indeed tranquil, nevertheless uninteresting. "I'm gonna go look for him."

She jumped out of her seat, box in hand, and walked toward the back. When she passed the laundry room, she waved hello to Zelda and Popo, both of whom were washing clothes. She continued walking, past the billiard room where Falcon and Fox were playing, you guessed it, billiards. Past the sky room elevator (it led to the very top of the pretty tall Manor, where there was an all-glass room) and past the pantry stood two high wooden doors that led to the courtyard.

The courtyard was very wide compared to most courtyards. It was a mile long and 3 miles wide. From left to right there were a vast variety of flowers planted in a pattern that read "WELCOME! PLEASE DON'T LITTER!" if it was seen from high up. Peach planted the flowers herself. This process took a little over half a year. The blooming process was accelerated thanks to Master Hand. His spell also made the flowers invulnerable to extreme heat, cold, and darkness, meaning they could not die unless they were pulled out.

There were also many fountains, statues, memorials, and a wishing well located in the center.

The courtyard was the second pride and joy of the Smash Bros. Manor besides the Smash Bros. themselves. Jigglypuff, for some reason, believed Kirby was in it somewhere. She began walking to the well.

"Something's telling me he's there. Why? What would he need to wish for? He already has everything a living thing could possibly want. To me, anyway," she told herself as she walked. She passed a statue of Master Hand and another of Yoshi. She passed a Fountain of Dreams replica and a Toad fountain.

"I still don't know why there's a Toad fountain."

The last thing she passed was a memorial of James McCloud, Fox's father. A few paces later came the wishing well. And Kirby. She began to run.

"Kirby! Kirby!" she yelled as she ran. His attention was instantly received. He jumped down from the edge of the well and waited for Jigglypuff to stop running. But balance was an issue, and she ended up crashing into him. The two were floored, with Jigglypuff on top of Kirby.

"You should work on your stopping power," an uninjured Kirby said. Jigglypuff quickly got up from the marble floor.

"Sorry about that."

"It's okay. How was the battle?"

"Same as usual. I almost got killed, but this time, a friend saved me."

"That's good to hear."

"What were you doing out here? You don't usually come to the courtyard."

"I…can't really explain."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, something drew me here. It was really weird."

"Hmm?"

"Some…thing…was telling me that I had to come to this well. There might be some magic in it, I think."

"What makes you say so?" Now Jigglypuff was curious.

"I took out a coin, made a wish, and dropped the coin into the well, and then it seemed to make a quick, bright flash. I'm unsure, but…this well, the fountain, and your hat may be connected."

"Wow. So, do you think there could be other spirits? It's possible, but unlikely…what is the connection?"

"Could you tell me please?"

"What did you wish for, Kirby?"

"For you to get back here alive."

"That's sweet of you…I got it!"

"Got what?"

"When this well flashed, it had to have fulfilled your wish, because I was saved. But, it only fulfilled _your_ wish. No one else really had their wishes fulfilled from this thing."

"Yeah…"

"So, with you being with me, I must have somehow transferred some of my hat's mystical energies to you, then you to your coin! That's just a guess, though. _But_ if I'm right, if Chisakumaki and Sukama are together, that means that Chisakumaki transferred some of her energies to him at some point. What's Sukama's connection to this thing? What did he wish for? Now I have to find this out."

Kirby was still stuck on the transferring energies part. "I…contain magic…"

"Kirby…"

"What is it?"

Jigglypuff hugged him. "Thank you…for wishing for me."

"No problem."

"I'll see you later."

Jigglypuff ran back to the Manor, minding her balance, and went to her room. She plopped on her bed and held her hat, gazing at it. "Why must you be so mysterious?" She got up and left, to discover some more things she'd like to know.

…_Yeah! The longest chapter I've ever written! I rule! And the next chapter will be even longer! Wait. Is that bad?_


	9. Deep Connections

_This is my second longest chapter, under the last. Enjoy it._

Chapter 9: Deep Connections

"This is way too much for me to handle."

Jigglypuff now had a mountain of duties/responsibilities, and she felt it indeed too much for her alone to handle. Sealing the spirits. Discovering Chisakimaku's, Chisakumaki's, _and_ Sukama's pasts. Unlocking new skills. Discovering the connection between her hat, the magic fountain, and the wishing well, if there was one. Living. Keeping her three friends a secret. Maintaining her relationship with Kirby. Fighting with the Smashers. Discovering her hat's secrets and her connection to the magic fountain, if she had one. She had no idea where to begin. She hadn't had any relaxation time in a good while. She wondered if she could cast aside all of this for now and go to a city. Besides, the fountain wasn't glowing anyway.

Or was it?

Jigglypuff decided to find this out first. She walked downstairs, hat on head, and went for the sky room elevator. The hat, luckily, emitted no glow. If it did, she would've surely been exposed. She walked past the dining room and the billiards room, both of which were empty. As she walked, she wished that she had brought along her Pokemon food, which she accidentally left on her TV stand. She took the left hall down to the sky room elevator, passing many other elevators along the way. (These led to some of the fighters' rooms: Peach, Falcon, Mr. Game & Watch, Link, Roy, and Yoshi. Their rooms were placed where it would take a long time to walk.) She pressed the button that read "UP"; she didn't have a choice. There was a ding, and the elevator began to go down. It didn't take very long for it to reach the bottom. The dark red door opened, and she walked in. The door closed behind her, and the elevator ascended.

The elevator itself was nice. It had mirrored walls, a carpeted floor, 2 chandeliers, and even a back door that was disguised just as the front was. Muzak played 24/7, and it was air-conditioned. But since the elevator moved so quickly, all of the decorations couldn't be enjoyed for very long. Jigglypuff reached the sky room. She exited out the front door. The elevator door closed, but the elevator stayed put.

"Now, where is that fountain?" she said, looking out the front of the room. She looked slowly to her left, where the Smash Central Park was located. She could see a faint red glow, but unlike before, she couldn't smell a thing.

"Finally. Now all I gotta do is get there…but…" She didn't want to take the elevator all the way back down and walk there. She wanted to fly. "I know I can do this again." She closed her eyes and concentrated very hard. It wasn't necessary, for as soon as she thought about flight, her hat emitted a bright sky blue shine, and Jigglypuff passed through the glass and was flying towards the fountain at high speed.

"Let's see what I find out about this time…"

Her flight ended when she reached the fountain's light. She inhaled and received another pleasant scent. Roses.

"First honey, now roses. Do the smells relate to the visions in some way I don't get?" She shrugged the best way she knew how. "I'll find out later." She stared at the fountain, which was still glowing red. The hat glowed the same color.

"When this happens…it seems like they're communicating."

Both the fountain and the hat stopped glowing abruptly and simultaneously. Jigglypuff stared into the fountain, waiting to fade away again.

"Okay, go ahead. Show me. Show me the past again."

A few seconds after she said that, she began fading. "Wonder what I'll witness this time around…"

Everything went black.

* * *

When Jigglypuff regained sight, she found herself, once more, in Smash Central Park. Everything was still in place; the trees and the bench were still intact. It was nighttime. There was a crescent moon in the dark blue sky, and there were many stars. It was very peaceful.

"I wonder what's going on in the village?"

She ran up the nearby hill and gazed down below. The village was in good condition. It was well lit with torches lining every plaza and dark area. The rainbow was still protecting the village, of course, but it wasn't a problem for Jigglypuff, of course. She remembered about the phantom thing. As she walked down to the village, she heard much commotion.

"This place is very energetic, even at night. Why can't the Manor be like this?"

She passed through the rainbow with ease and walked throughout the village, searching for any hints of new secrets about Chisakimaku. As she walked, she noticed that most of the plazas were still open, and the village was still bustling with rabbits.

"How come what happened before isn't happening again?" Jigglypuff wondered. She wasn't flying to her destination automatically like last time. Eventually, she caught an interesting conversation as she walked. Maybe this was part of the fountain's plan?

"Hey! Know what I heard?" one rabbit asked another. He was tall and wore a plaid blue hat.

"What?" the rabbit of normal height (Jigglypuff's) asked, wearing an acrylic green hat.

"Have you heard of the Smash Spirits?"

"The Smash what?"

"Spirits. They're a force that was formed out of 7 elements. Something contaminated them, and they became evil."

"Wow."

"Their path of destruction supposedly includes this village. Ha! Good luck!"

"Yeah! We have the rainbow and Princess Chisakimaku to protect us. We'll be fine!"

"I forgot about that!" Jigglypuff exclaimed. "Wait. If she's a princess, then where's her castle? I don't see it anywhere in this village." She neared the statue of the princess, where most of the village's light was. Torches surrounded the 20-foot-tall statue, and rabbits from all over were praising it in a sort of melody. They repeated their praise in a musical tone.

_Hail Chisakimaku!  
Hail Chisakimaku!  
Protector of our village!  
Hail Chisakimaku!  
Hail Chisakimaku!  
The one who will save us!_

"That's nice…" Jigglypuff stopped for a listen. Apparently, the rabbits of this village greatly respected Chisakimaku. Why? What did she do to receive such praise? How did she become a princess in the first place? The normal, boring, birthright way or something else? Just more of the many questions that flooded Jigglypuff's mind. She continued walking. She walked through (literally through) the crowd and the statue. She looked and looked for Chisakimaku but had no luck.

"Why can't I fly to her like before? Oh, the hell with this."

Utilizing the sky blue glow of her hat, she rose above the village and continued looking for any signs of a castle or Chisakimaku. "Where is she hiding? It really does take a while for me to find her alone." She finally decided to head back to the fountain. She was probably there. When she got there, not to her surprise, no one was in the vicinity.

"Hmm, this is tough…I know! If the fountain was here for centuries, maybe the wishing well is still where the Manor is. Er, was. Is going to be- whatever! Sukama should be there and that's better than nothing."

She flew to the area where the Manor would be created. Her hunch was correct. The wishing well was still standing. Also, Sukama was standing over it, looking into it. (The well looks like an ordinary well, except crystallized.)

"There's Sukama. I wonder why he's here…" Jigglypuff said as she landed nearby.

_There's something peculiar about this well..._thought Sukama as he stared at his reflection. Jigglypuff did nothing except stand and watch silently. Sukama stared deeply into the well for what seemed like minutes, saying absolutely nothing. Soon he reached into his pants pocket and pulled out a golden coin with a strange pattern imprinted on it. It was quite obvious that the coin was the village's currency. It was also quite obvious that Sukama was about to make a wish. He clenched the coin tightly in his small fist. He muttered a few words and then dropped the coin into the well.

"Oh, that's not fair! What'd he wish for? This doesn't help at all!" a frustrated Jigglypuff whined.

Minutes passed. The two didn't move an inch.

"Something…something just has to happen," Sukama said, ever hopeful. A mysterious power had been urging him to go to the well for weeks, but it hadn't been very strong. He only wanted to visit the well for a few seconds; after that, the urge vanished. That night, the feeling was as strong as ever. It couldn't be helped. He had to come. And he was determined to know the reason. Pretty soon, both sensed a mystical energy surrounding them.

"Let's see…" said Jigglypuff, paying close attention to what was happening. Sukama still stood where he was, looking at the well's water. He saw it flash.

_What's going on? Is this the reason I came? What is this energy surrounding me?_

Sukama stepped a few paces back to ensure his safety. The well began flashing wildly. Even Jigglypuff, already quite a distance away, stepped back a bit. Was this what Kirby could've witnessed? Was the well fulfilling Sukama's wish as it did Kirby's? She would indeed find out.

The flashing of the well calmed, and Sukama stepped to it to take another look at the water. Still sparkling. He still stared at the beautiful water, shining even more in the moonlight's bask. Then he saw something that immediately caught his eye.

A reflection of Chisakumaki.

It faded very quickly, and as it did, the well returned to its normal state.

"Weird…" Jigglypuff said. Sukama stood, dumbfounded. He then fell to his knees, resting his arms on the well's side, and began chuckling. "What's he laughing for?" Jigglypuff asked no one.

_So that's it…that's why I had to come. To see her…_

Jigglypuff began to fade away. Though she didn't discover much, now she had 3 new questions stuck in her head.

Why was Sukama laughing?

What did he see?

What did Kirby see?

* * *

When Jigglypuff returned to her own time, she could guess that it was around 1:00. She looked toward the Manor. She saw Mr. Game & Watch, Mario, Fox, Zelda, Ness, and Marth about to leave for the World Portals. This reminded her of her rematch with DK. She ran back to the Manor as fast as she could. As she neared it, she began to get hungry again. She hoped that Peach was either making lunch or had made it already. She busted through the door. The pleasing scent of cheeseburgers filled the air. She walked into the kitchen and found that Peach was making burgers.

"Jigglypuff, how are you?" Peach asked.

"I'm all right. Just have a lot on my mind," replied Jigglypuff.

"Where have you been for the past half hour?"

Jigglypuff didn't realize so much time had passed. To her, it felt like 10 minutes.

"In…the park."

"Oh."

"What were you doing earlier?"

"Not a whole lot. Just stuff around the Manor. Now that Zelda's having a battle, it's a little harder doing everything on my own. But I can manage."

Peach flipped over all 30-something burgers, each making sizzling noises. She went into the "Lunch" fridge and grabbed 20-something packets of cheese, then put them on the counter by the stove.

"Question?" asked Jigglypuff.

"What is it?"

"Why do you do what you do?"

"What do you mean?"

"You're always contributing in some way. Do you do this out of choice, or...?"

Peach sighed. "It's a personal thing."

"How?"

"I am the princess of the Mushroom Kingdom. Being such…I haven't exactly done much of anything. In my castle, all the Toads do much of everything: cleaning, cooking, et cetera. I can't help but feel that the only thing I'm good for is getting kidnapped…Doing what I can here helps quell that feeling. Does that help?"

"Yeah. Thanks." Jigglypuff smiled. Peach smiled in return. "I'll be back."

"Where are you going now?"

"Any idea where Kirby is?"

"He should be in his room. That's where I last saw him."

"Thanks. Again."

Jigglypuff hurried upstairs. She had to talk some more with Kirby after what she'd witnessed. She got to Kirby's room door and opened it slowly. His room was simple, and Jigglypuff had never been inside before. He had a small bed in front of his wide window, a dresser with a television right beside it, a closet (which contained little), and a few posters of himself. Kirby was sitting in his beanbag chair, which was red and covered with blue stars. He'd been waiting patiently, with the window open, since around 12:30. He just sat and did nothing.

"Kirby!"

"You finally came back!"

"Yeah."

"So, what did you find out?"

"About the well?"

"Mm-hmm."

"Let me think…" Jigglypuff sat on Kirby's bed. "When I first appeared in the village, I didn't discover anything about the well, so I decided to go to it on my own."

"What did you see?" Kirby was on the edge of his seat.

"I got to the well and found Sukama."

"Huh?"

"A friend I met earlier. Anyway, he was staring into the well for a while, and then he took out a strange coin, muttered something under his breath, and dropped the coin into the well."

"Then what?"

"For a long time, nothing. Suddenly, the well started flashing like crazy, but it calmed down. Sukama looked into the well again, and the weirdest thing happened."

"What? What happened?"

"He fell to his knees and started laughing. I don't get why."

"Did he see anything?"

"I don't know. I didn't even hear what he said when he put the coin in. That sucks!"

Both brainstormed for a few minutes. Finally, something clicked in Jigglypuff's head.

"Wait!"

"What?"

"You wished for me, right?"

Kirby nodded.

"And you said you saw...?"

"The well flashed a couple of times…and I _did_ see a faint reflection…"

"Why didn't you say so? I get it now!"

"Tell me!"

"When the well flashes, it fulfills a wish. Sukama had to have wished and saw a reflection related to it. Since you wished for me, Sukama must've wished for-"

"Lunch is ready!" Peach called from downstairs.

"Coming!" both replied.

"I get it now," Kirby said, getting up and leaving.

"Wait for me!" Jigglypuff exclaimed, following him. When the two got to the dining room, DK, Falco, Falcon, and Young Link were sitting at the table waiting for their burgers. Kirby and Jigglypuff didn't sit too far from Young Link, but they sat right next to each other.

"Hey," greeted Falcon.

"How ya doin'?" said Young Link.

"We're okay," said Kirby.

Peach brought the large burger tray to the table and set it down. Everyone grabbed one burger (except for DK, who didn't eat meat, and Kirby, who took 10) and began eating.

"Jigglypuff, our rematch is after lunch," said DK.

"Where?" Jigglypuff asked, taking a bite of her burger.

"I think it's Mushroom Kingdom II."

"All right, then."

Jigglypuff had finished her burger before the rest. She then went upstairs, put her hat on her dresser, stared at it for a little while, and went back downstairs. DK met her at the front door.

"Let's go," he said.

"Good luck," Kirby called from the dining room. Though the two left and Jigglypuff didn't respond, he wasn't offended in the least.

* * *

Jigglypuff and DK made it to Mushroom Kingdom 2 at around 2:30. They waited for the signal to fight, in the void before the match.

"Can someone tell me the rules please?" Jigglypuff said.

"Hang on." DK took out and read a tiny monitor that recorded its owner's KO's, Falls, and SD's. It also displayed the battle's time limit, the character's stock or coins, and the battle arena. Jigglypuff had forgotten her own monitor. "3 stock each…5 minutes…Low item appearance…This match should be fun." DK pressed a button, and the monitor disappeared.

"I hope you're ready," said Jigglypuff.

"You ask yourself that question," said DK.

"Ready?"

The match was about to begin.

"GO!"

Jigglypuff immediately jumped towards DK, who was on the left of the middle platform, and attempted a Pound, but DK sidestepped. She turned around and tried again. It connected. As DK landed, he was Pounded again and brought to 24 percent damage. He grabbed Jigglypuff and slammed her into the ground, then used his downward Smash. Jigglypuff kicked him as she landed. DK landed on the far right of the stage. Jigglypuff had an idea. When Birdo came from the opposite side, she went to her and Pounded her until she was knocked away. DK jumped towards her and used Spinning Kong. Jigglypuff stood on the edge, stopped the spinning by grabbing him, and threw him backwards, KO'ing him easily.

Jigglypuff had 29 percent damage.

DK was revived. As he was, a Crate appeared in the middle of the stage. Jigglypuff couldn't get to it in time. DK broke it; out came a Pokeball, a Home-Run Bat, and a Motion Sensor Bomb. Jigglypuff grabbed the ball and hit DK with it. Snorlax appeared, landed, and knocked DK slightly upward. As soon as he landed, Snorlax hit him again, knocking him to the left of the level, and bringing him to 53 percent damage. Jigglypuff threw the Motion Sensor Bomb upward. DK tried to hit her with a Meteor Smash. Jigglypuff dodged, and luckily, the bomb had already landed, so DK sealed his own fate by accident.

3 lives to 1. 3 minutes left. The tables had completely turned from the previous battle. DK was revived.

"You're doing great," he said.

Jigglypuff picked up the Home-Run Bat. "You too."

"I'm gonna fight serious this time!"

DK jumped at her and spun around, bringing her damage percentage to 41 and knocking the bat out of her "hand". She quickly grabbed him, threw him upward, picked up the bat, and hit him with it, giving him 32 percent damage. DK landed on a carpet. Jigglypuff jumped on it and put DK to sleep. Then she got an easy Home Run. The match was won. Jigglypuff collected her earnings (1 coin) and left the arena.

DK did the following this time.

* * *

They made it back to the Manor. DK wasn't at all upset. In fact, he was impressed that he lost so quickly.

And to Jigglypuff, even.

In the Royal Room, they found the Ice Climbers, Link, Peach, and Yoshi.

"So…how was the match this time around?" Peach asked cautiously.

"Jigglypuff kicked my butt. Not only did she win quick, she didn't die at all!"

"Um…yeah," laughed Jigglypuff.

"Well, I'm not surprised," said Yoshi.

"Me neither," stated Nana.

"Is Kirby still here?" asked Jigglypuff.

"…I don't know, actually," said Peach.

Jigglypuff began walking upstairs.

"Might as well," DK said, also walking upstairs. Both went to their own rooms. Jigglypuff sat on her bed.

"Now what do I do? It's gonna be so boring today…and where the hell is Chisakimaku?"

"You called me, chi?"

Chisakimaku and Sukama were outside Jigglypuff's window, on the Spirit Cloud.

"Finally! Where have you been all these hours?"

"We were talking. It _has_ been 7 centuries," said Sukama.

Jigglypuff began to speak, but was instantly interrupted.

"I know. We need to have a talk, chi."

"Okay…that needs to stop."

"Sorry. Habit."

"Uh-huh."

"What are you going to ask?" asked Sukama.

"Okay, let's start with this…How did you become a princess?"

Chisakimaku hesitated a few times before answering, as if it was on the tip of her tongue.

"Honestly, I can't remember, chi! But I'll let you know if something comes to mind."

"Right. Next question."

Sukama remained silent.

"How did you use your hat once you received it?"

"It took me a while to master the hat's power. Pretty soon, with a lot of practice, I began to eliminate any evil that threatened my village, and later, the Smash Spirits, chi!"

"Next question. This one's for Sukama." He paid attention. "When you went to the well…what did you wish for?"

"I wished for Chisakumaki's safety."

"So then, you saw her reflection, right?"

"Yes."

"Were you laughing…because of that?"

"Actually…well, it's really kinda hard to explain. I've believed that was the reason for centuries, but I've had my doubts."

"What would be your second choice?"

"Maybe I was just glad that that wish was fulfilled."

Something else clicked when Sukama said that. Jigglypuff knew. Sukama was the reason that Chisakimaku was sealed in the fountain.

"You…how…_why_ would you let this _happen_ to her?" Jigglypuff screamed. Sukama was hardly shocked.

"Please, chi…" She tried to comfort Jigglypuff, to no avail.

"Why would you even consider a wish as stupid as that? It doesn't make any sense! If you loved her _that_ much…why would you...?"

"You don't understand," said Sukama.

"Yeah, I know that…so answer me!"

"It was that love…that led to the decision."

Jigglypuff calmed down as much as she could to listen to Sukama as much as she could.

"You see, I really loved - actually, I still do love - Chisakumaki, and Chisakimaku is my best friend. My only friend…I couldn't imagine either of them taken from me. This fear created the urge to go to the well I'd heard so much about. I heard it granted any wish, but only to the purest of heart and soul. I tried my luck. I wished for Chisakumaki to be safe from harm…no matter what it took. The price was great, but nothing unfamiliar with what I've already experienced. I was left with nothing once again. But I knew that she was safe, even if it meant that she wasn't with me. And for 700 years, this thought kept my heart alive. I hoped that I could see her again, just once. And, well…" He turned towards Chisakimaku.

"Sukama, I never knew…" Chisakimaku burst into tears. "Thank you, chi! Now I know! It's not that horrible anymore!" She hugged Sukama tightly, and Sukama did the same to her.

Jigglypuff was stunned.

"I get it now. I'm so sorry…"

"It's okay," Sukama forgave.

"Anyway…Chisakimaku."

"Hmm?" She was still hugging Sukama and spoke into his chest.

"Do you know what spirit is coming tomorrow?"

Chisakimaku stopped hugging Sukama and wiped away a remaining tear. "No. If I had to guess, I'd say the Smash Spirit of Wind, chi."

Jigglypuff knew what that meant. A whole lot more tornadoes.

"What are you gonna do now?" asked Sukama.

"I need to clear my head…I'm gonna go lie down for a while."

"Go, chi?"

"In the park."

"Good. Well…bye!"

The Spirit Cloud rose into the sky and disappeared. Jigglypuff put on her hat and went downstairs, where Peach was washing dishes.

"Later, Peach!" she called out, about to open the front door.

Peach didn't reply.

_Guess she didn't hear me._ Jigglypuff left the Manor.

* * *

Jigglypuff made it to the park. She stared at the fountain for a short while. Neither it nor the hat glowed. She decided to go on top of that familiar hill. When she got there, to her surprise, Mewtwo stood there, looking at the sky.

"What are you doing here? I know you go out, but I didn't know you came here."

"_Likewise,_" Mewtwo replied.

Jigglypuff sat on the grass beside him. "Why do you come here?"

"_This park is the most peaceful place in the Smash Bros. World. The reason I come…is nature._"

Jigglypuff listened.

"_One can become in tune with nature just by listening. Nature and its beauty shine here._"

"I never paid attention to that."

"_You, being a natural born Pokemon, already possess the ability to be incredibly in tune with nature. Me…I must listen to gain. But no matter how skilled or how natural something is to anyone, there is always room for improvement. Especially in your case. You must listen now. Absorb the sky, the trees, the grass, the wind, and the sun. I am certain that you will feel invigorated after a while._"

Jigglypuff couldn't challenge Mewtwo's logic even if she wanted to. So she obeyed. She looked in the direction Mewtwo was, and listened. Absorbed. Her hat took it all in within a half an hour. And so did she.

* * *

Jigglypuff made it to the Manor at around 3:10. She had the rest of the day to do whatever she wanted. Something she didn't know. She'd probably just sleep. Instead of thinking about it, she just waited to see what would happen next. When she got inside, no one was around. They were most likely either in their rooms, other rooms, or out. Jigglypuff went to her room and instantly laid on her bed.

"What now? It's gonna be so boring if I don't think of _something_ to do soon. I could go to sleep, but what'll I do when I wake up? Man…"

Her door opened slowly.

"You're bored too, aren't you?" asked Kirby.

"Like you wouldn't believe."

Kirby sat beside Jigglypuff.

"What do you do when there's nothing to do?" asked Jigglypuff.

"Practically what you're doing right now. But, there's a place that I've always wanted to visit."

"Where?"

"…Forget it."

"Kirby. The last thing I need is more questions. Please tell me."

"Nah. It's too far away."

"Kirby…"

"I'm just saying, it's very far. What's the point of saying where I wanna go? Not only am I bored, but I really don't feel like doing a thing. Besides, I'm not sure if I'll be able to go. I'll tell you later."

Kirby left the room, just like that.

"Just great. One more question…"

Jigglypuff closed her eyes. The air around her was comfortably warm. There was a pleasant breeze seeping through her cracked (not literally cracked, cracked as in barely open) window. All of the pleasing air was very relaxing. It made it virtually impossible for anyone _not_ to fall asleep. So she did.

_And I'll end it here. The chapter was actually two pages longer than this, but enough is enough. I'll sum up what happened at the beginning of the next chapter, the fourth spirit battle._


	10. First Wind

_Another chapter count reaches the double digits. Go me. I said I would sum up what I omitted from the last chapter at the beginning of this one. So…basically, Jigglypuff woke up 4 hours later, ate, and found out that Kirby actually wanted to go with her to the spirit battles. Yep. Now for this chapter._

Chapter 10: First Wind

Jigglypuff opened her eyes at 9:00 sharp. She instantly jumped out of bed and looked outside. Not as calm as last time.

The sky was dim, the sun covered by clouds. A strong gust of wind hit Jigglypuff in her face as soon as she opened her window.

"Is it going to rain again?"

What happened then was a lot worse than rain. A tornado slowly formed from above, several hundred feet away from the Manor, which was slightly bigger and darker than your average F5. Jigglypuff groaned in frustration.

"Why more tornadoes? I'm _sick_ of tornadoes."

More and more tornadoes were forming by the second. They moved around slowly, but wildly, devouring anything they came in contact with, even some of the ground. They destroyed Electri-City within minutes. Unsurprisingly, they couldn't destroy anything in the Smash Central Park, or the Manor (thanks to the Seal).

"I don't see Chisakimaku anywhere. She better come soon." Jigglypuff put on her hat and looked outside once more before leaving the room to go downstairs. There she found everyone in the Royal Room (except for Mewtwo) chattering about the weather. Jigglypuff was able to make out some of the things that were said.

"This needs to stop," said Ness.

"Why does all of this happen? What's making it happen?" said Link.

"Yeah! Whoever or whatever is doing this needs to quit it!" said Pichu.

"Master Hand needs to stop being lazy and fix this. Now," said Bowser.

Jigglypuff walked to the back of the Manor, signaling Kirby to follow her. He stood up.

"I'm gonna go to the back for a minute."

No one heard him, but it mattered none. He followed Jigglypuff to the sky room elevator. When they reached it, Jigglypuff pressed the button.

"Kirby?"

"Yes?"

"I know that you wanna come with me…so I'm gonna let you and see how it goes."

Kirby suddenly became excited. The elevator door opened and the two walked in. The elevator ascended.

"Will I be able to go again if it all goes well? And by that, I mean if I don't get hurt?"

"Sure! I need the extra motivation anyway. The Smash Spirits are getting stronger as I progress."

The elevator stopped and the door opened. Jigglypuff and Kirby ran to the front of the room. The sky was darker than earlier, and there were lots more tornadoes. 15 of them, each varying in size, surrounded the Manor, and there were even more of them further away.

"Now we just need to wait for them," said Jigglypuff.

Kirby was concerned about the dangerous conditions outside, but not afraid. Even though the tornadoes were menacing in both size and overall look, he still wanted to at least _see_ a spirit. The wait was 5 minutes long. Chisakimaku and Sukama finally came with the Spirit Cloud.

"Hi!" Chisakimaku said from outside the glass, muffling her voice.

"Is that a cloud?" Kirby asked, surprised. "How-"

"I thought the same thing at first," said Jigglypuff. "But some things aren't worth questioning."

"Let's go. You have another spirit to seal," said Sukama.

"Right. Kirby, give me your hand." Jigglypuff extended her hand.

"Don't you mean 'arm'?" asked Kirby.

"You know what I mean."

Kirby grabbed her arm. Jigglypuff turned transparent, as did Kirby.

"Don't let go," she said. The two jumped onto the Spirit Cloud. "Now for the seal…" The cloud rose out of the seal and headed towards the World Portals.

"It's gonna be real hard to avoid all of these, chi!"

"I'll try to hold them off any way I can," said Sukama.

"Did you put the seal up?' asked Jigglypuff. Chisakimaku nodded.

"Here they come!" warned Kirby.

Each tornado began to chase the four at 15 times their original speed. The Spirit Cloud out-flew the rear tornadoes and flew around the ones in front, almost getting sucked in more than once. Eventually, the group encountered a tornado wall.

"Oh, hell…" Jigglypuff said as the cloud stopped. "What now?"

"I'll take care of this," said Sukama, flying in front of the cloud. He spread his arms far apart. Two extremely bright energy balls appeared in the palms of both hands, and his wings began to glow with a rainbow shine. He put his hands together.

"RAINBEAM!"

Two beams shot out from the balls of light in his palms as even wider beams of rainbow light emerged from his wings. His hands remained glowing. As soon as the blasts hit (and destroyed) the first tornado in the middle of the wall, Sukama spread his arms again, and the four beams separated; two traveled left, two traveled right. The tornado wall was demolished, Sukama returned to the Spirit Cloud, and the group proceeded.

"Mind telling us what that was?" asked Kirby.

"My strongest attack. I can't use it again for a while…"

"Which world, chi?" Chisakimaku asked as they neared the World Portals.

Jigglypuff had a problem. None of the Smash Bros. Worlds were wind-based save for Green Greens, but that wind was artificial. She didn't have much time to think. Especially now, since…

"Where are they?" asked Kirby.

The World Portals were gone.

"Now what do we do?" said Jigglypuff. Sukama pointed to a nearby tornado.

"They're in there!"

"How do you know, chi?"

Sukama flew into the twister. "Trust me!" he yelled as he was engulfed.

"We need to go after him!" exclaimed Chisakimaku.

"You better hold on," Jigglypuff informed Kirby as she grasped the cloud. Kirby did as he was told. The Spirit Cloud flew into the tornado and instantly began to spin around, rising into the dark sky. The seal was disabled and the three were separated from each other. The group rose as they spun, getting hit by (luckily) small debris from the ground. Jigglypuff had difficulty opening her eyes, but she managed to catch a brief glimpse of Sukama flying upward.

"Look for the Rainbow Cruise portal!" she yelled, hoping that one of the others heard her. Sukama flew downward and caught Kirby, then Chisakimaku, and last, Jigglypuff. He began looking for the stage, even though he didn't actually know what it was.

Jigglypuff spotted it. "It's over there! Get there!" she yelled, pointing to it. The portal, rising and spinning rapidly, seemed difficult to reach, put Sukama followed its every random move with little trouble. As he followed, he homed in closer and closer until he was right beside it. "Where's the Spirit Cloud?"

"It will always make its way to me, chi! Don't worry!"

Sukama jerked to the right and the four were inside. The Spirit Cloud headed for the portal as soon as Chisakimaku went inside it. It took a little less than 4 seconds for the blue cloud to make it.

* * *

At last, Jigglypuff, Chisakimaku, Sukama, and Kirby arrived at the supposed base of the Spirit of Wind, Rainbow Cruise.

Was it ever evident.

The sky was gray instead of blue, the rainbows had disappeared, and the Rainbow Cruise was flying around erratically, crashing into many a platform. Because of that, the group stayed on the trusty, stable Spirit Cloud.

"This place…what did that spirit do to this place?" asked Kirby, a bit weirded-out.

"The Smash Spirits always leave their mark wherever they go," said Sukama.

"They think it's all just for good humor, but it's not, chi! It's terrible!" added Chisakimaku.

Jigglypuff tried to stay where she stood and paid very close attention to her surroundings. Kirby noticed this.

"Jigglypuff, what are-"

"I just know something bad is gonna happen again. It already happened twice, and I don't want it to happen again."

"Useless, if you ask me," said Sukama.

"Not that I did…but what do you mean?"

"The spirits are extremely crafty. They can come at you from anywhere with anything. They could be right in front of you and you wouldn't know it. In this case…wind is _everywhere_."

Jigglypuff, even though she caught Sukama's drift, still stood her ground. She had a plan. If she kept on taking precautions, the spirit would come after her that much quicker. She wanted the spirit to get her.

"Do what you want, but I'm just saying…"

"I hope she'll be okay," Kirby said, staring at the out-of-control Rainbow Cruise. For minutes, the group stood or sat and waited. Not a thing went on for those minutes. And for those minutes, for some reason, everyone was silent. The silence grew more and more eerie as time passed, much like the moments before the battle with Abunai Mizu. And as the water had stopped rippling then, now the wind stopped blowing. Jigglypuff noticed it first.

"Feel that?"

"What?" asked Kirby.

"The wind…it stopped…" said Sukama.

Jigglypuff felt herself getting lighter and lighter.

"Why am I...? Oh no…"

The wind came from below, and it was concentrated on her only. She held on tighter to the Spirit Cloud, hoping that she wouldn't get carried away.

"Guys…it's here…"

The wind grew stronger.

"Grab her!" said Sukama. He and Kirby (Chisakimaku had to refrain) immediately tried to hold Jigglypuff down, who was now dangling upside-down by her arms.

The wind grew stronger.

"Can't hold on…"

"Try and hold on a little longer!" said Kirby, actually standing on Jigglypuff.

"You can do it, chi!" encouraged Chisakimaku.

The wind grew stronger.

"I'm losing it...!" One of her arms slipped.

"She's gonna let go!" yelled Sukama. Jigglypuff's other arm slipped, and Kirby along with Sukama fell. Jigglypuff shot into the air like a rocket. Kirby stood up quickly.

"We have to get her! Now!" he yelled.

"The Spirit Cloud doesn't climb that fast, chi!"

"I'll get you up there."

Sukama picked up Kirby with one hand and they took off after Jigglypuff. She was rising at a very high speed and was also tumbling, rendering her incredibly dizzy. It took a good amount of seconds, but Sukama was soon directly below the updraft.

"I need to get in front!" yelled Kirby. He needed to yell due to the quantity of air rushing past them.

"Why? What can you do?" asked Sukama.

"You'll see! Now let's go!"

The two sped up, ahead of Jigglypuff. They were now out of Chisakimaku's sight. They cut in front of Jigglypuff.

"Throw me up!" Kirby yelled. Sukama did as he was told and retreated. As Jigglypuff and the updraft neared Kirby, he held his breath, then used his Swallow technique. He inhaled the strong wind and Jigglypuff, kept them both in his mouth, and began to fall. Sukama caught him and returned him to the Spirit Cloud, where he spit Jigglypuff out.

Kirby then passed out from exhaustion.

"It was too much for him, I guess," said Sukama. Jigglypuff regained her consciousness.

"Is he alright?" she asked.

"He'll be fine. He just fainted, chi."

Jigglypuff gave a short sigh of relief, then stood up. "This spirit is a little punk, just like the first three losers! Where are you? What are you, scared of me?" she said loudly.

The ones that were still awake heard a soft, male voice.

"You got guts to talk to _me_ that way, Spirit Hunter. Better hold on to your hat!"

There was a very strong, sudden wind gust that almost knocked the four off the cloud. A small tornado slowly formed in midair 40 feet in front of them. Arms sprouted from it, then legs, then a head, which was the size of an average human's (plus nonexistent eyes). The whole tornado formed a floating, transparent, lean body. The hands and feet of the spirit were like smoke, and its entire shade was dark gray.

"I am Whirlwind, the Spirit of Wind. I'll be the one to get rid of you once and for all!"

"Wait. Whirlwind?"

"Yes."

"…That's it? Doesn't that sound kinda direct to you?"

"Well, the others didn't want to help me think of a name, and I'm a bit creativity-impaired, so- hey! Stop talking to me like we're not about to fight to the death!"

Jigglypuff's hat shone sky-blue and she flew off the cloud. As she did that, Kirby awoke.

"So that's what a Smash Spirit looks like…"

"Take this!" Whirlwind shouted, trying to blow Jigglypuff away (literally, with his mouth). Jigglypuff could actually see the wind travel through the air, and it was easy to avoid. Whirlwind tried again 4 times; Jigglypuff dodged 4 times.

"This isn't working. She's too quick. But let's see her dodge this."

Whirlwind raised his smoke-like hands above himself, extended them, and lashed them at Jigglypuff. She tried to rise above them, but they followed her due to their extendability. The ghastly gases grabbed her and held her tight.

"She's in trouble, chi," said a worried Chisakimaku for the sake of talking.

"You're not gonna like this part!" Whirlwind said, chuckling sinisterly.

He slammed her head onto multiple platforms. With each slam, the hat grew dimmer and dimmer. Kirby was in shock.

"Why are you just sitting here? We have to help!"

"We would if we could, trust me. But we can't. I'm still unable to attack effectively, and my halo doesn't work against non-physical opponents," said Sukama.

"I'm forbidden, chi…" Chisakimaku said regrettably.

Kirby gave a disappointed sigh.

"Why won't you die?" asked a frustrated Whirlwind.

Jigglypuff's hat shone a bright sky-blue and broke free from the grasp.

"Think about it. I'm the Spirit Hunter. I'm tougher than that."

"Is that a fact? Well, that means a tough opponent deserves a tougher attack!"

"She'd better be careful, or she won't survive…" said Sukama, observing the fight closely. Whirlwind was preparing for another attack familiar to Jigglypuff. He spun around rapidly, his smoke-like hands creating yet another twister. As the twister took form, Whirlwind flew straight up out of the funnel, and Jigglypuff began being sucked in.

"_Why?_ What's the point!" she yelled before she was sucked inside.

"Jigglypuff!" screamed Kirby.

The wind was so fierce, it was sharp. Not only was she dizzy, but also she was being scratched severely from top to bottom. She refrained from screaming out in pain out of fear that her mouth would be torn to shreds. As she spun, all she did was ask herself one question. What beats wind?

The hat had reached its shining limit. She fainted once again. But, unlike Volcanis, Whirlwind halted his assault and set the Spirit Hunter on a nearby platform.

"He stopped? What'd he stop for, chi?" Chisakimaku was confused, but Kirby was ecstatic.

"Who cares? He stopped!"

"Do you see this?" Whirlwind asked them. "This is called a weakling! It seems that your precious Spirit Hunter is nothing but an overconfident, idiotic loser! I honestly can't see how you ever counted on her to come through and beat all seven of us!"

"You do _not_ wanna find out why, chi!"

"Really?" Whirlwind pointed at the downed, bloody puffball. She twitched once. "That thing? It's harmless!"

"No…" said Sukama.

"Are you kidding?" asked Whirlwind.

"Not at all. I know that you know how Chisakimaku was when you battled her. It couldn't have ended that fast. If you thought that was bad, well…if you think I'm kidding, finish off your opponent."

"That I will. Now…" Whirlwind turned to where Jigglypuff laid.

Or rather, where she _did_ lay.

"What? Where is she?" He turned around. Jigglypuff was right in his face. She was completely restored, and now, there was a pure force surrounding her, and the hat was shining bright as ever.

"Unbelievable…You're pretty strong for a puffball. I've underestimated you."

"What type of energy is that? It's nothing like I've ever used or seen, chi!"

"Let's just pray that this energy helps her win this battle," said Kirby.

Jigglypuff grinned. "You sure have. I have the forces of nature to protect me. You can't win now."

"Oh? Well let's see if those forces help."

"They already have."

Whirlwind looked down and noticed that the Rainbow Cruise was traveling its normal route. "Okay…now let's see them help _you_!"

Jigglypuff grabbed Whirlwind's smoke-like hands and, utilizing their extendability, threw him into a mountain. She then pulled him back toward her and punched him in his stomach. Then she started choking him. Without her hands.

"Why can't I move? Why...?" Whirlwind asked in his choked-up state.

"I told you. The forces of nature are on _my_ side. Aren't you a force of nature? Huh?"

Whirlwind whimpered as he was tossed into the air.

"This battle's over," said Sukama.

Jigglypuff sucked Whirlwind into her hat. Its glow dimmed a little, and the energy that surrounded her faded slowly. She flew back to the Spirit Cloud.

"Good work, Jigglypuff! You did pretty well out there on your own," complimented Sukama.

"What was that weird energy surrounding you, chi?"

"I'm gonna guess it had something to do with the time I spent with Mewtwo. But I won, and that's what matters."

The sky cleared up and the rainbows reappeared. All was well.

"Let's get outta here," the four said at once. They left the level and headed for the Smash Bros. Manor.

* * *

The four reached the Manor silently. The weather, as well as anything previously demolished, was restored, as usual. It was 11:50 when Jigglypuff reached her window. She and Kirby jumped into her room through the window.

"Only 3 left, chi!" Chisakimaku cheered, smiling widely.

"We'll see you later. _Try_ to have some fun for once," said Sukama. The Spirit Cloud left.

"Wow. Those battles are pretty rough on you, Jigglypuff," said Kirby.

"Yeah, they are. But I'm used to it by now, though. Something always happens when I fight. It's like I'm blessed or something."

"Are you coming downstairs?"

Jigglypuff nodded and the two went downstairs to the Royal Room. The first person they saw there wasn't a person. It was Pichu, jumping for joy and cheering loudly.

"Not that it's uncommon, but you're looking happy today," said Kirby.

"Why wouldn't I be? We're going on a field trip!" Pichu said, giggling.

"Really? Where to?" asked Jigglypuff. Maybe she actually _would_ have some fun today…

"Snowy Plains! I love the Snowy Plains!" Pichu squealed.

"Where's everybody else?" asked Kirby.

"They're getting ready! They should be upstairs somewhere."

"I better get ready too," said Kirby as he walked to his room with Jigglypuff close behind. He rummaged through his small closet and took out a purple scarf and a large, blue winter hat. "What about you? Are you bringing anything?"

"Maybe."

"Well, I'll be downstairs until we leave." And with that, Kirby went back to the Royal Room. Jigglypuff went to her own room, wondering what she could take with her to the Snowy Plains. After a little scouring, she found a patterned scarf with red, green, blue, and yellow colors. It matched her hat perfectly, so she decided to bring it. After that, she went down to the Royal Room, where Luigi, Ness, Link, and the Ice Climbers were chatting with Kirby.

"Hi guys," she said.

"Jigglypuff, are you excited?" asked Ness, holding a small, dark blue, fluffy coat and a pair of sweats the same color.

"…A little bit." Jigglypuff sat next to Kirby on the couch.

"Well, it's nothing for us," said Popo, wearing his normal attire.

"Hopefully this trip will last a while," said Luigi, holding a large green coat and a green winter hat, both with the letter L patched on in the front.

"Wonder where Pichu went all of a sudden…" said Jigglypuff.

"When are we leaving?" asked Kirby.

"5 minutes, at noon. So everybody should be coming down soon," said Link, holding a green parka and dark green sweats.

"That rhymed," said Nana, in normal attire.

Yoshi, Young Link, Peach, C. Falcon, Fox, and Marth came downstairs.

"Hello!" said Yoshi, bringing nothing with him.

"How are you?" greeted Kirby.

"I'm fine," said Falcon, also bringing nothing with him.

"We're leaving in 2 minutes," said Peach, now wearing pink sweats, a pink sweater, and holding a pink fur coat.

"Good. The quicker, the better," said Marth, bringing nothing.

"I'll get the bus started," said Peach, walking outside. Yes, the Smashers had their own traveling bus. Its only drivers are Peach, Samus, and C. Falcon, and it is for trip usage only. When Peach left, the rest of the Smashers came down and waited for departure in the Royal Room. They talked as they waited. Peach soon called them from outside.

"Okay, everyone! Time to hit the road!"

_That's over. The next chapter is another spirit battle…_


	11. Simply Snow

_Yet another spirit battle chapter._

Chapter 11: Simply Snow

"Are we there yet?"

"No."

"Are we there yet?"

"No."

"Are we there yet?"

"_No._"

"Are we-"

"No! Shut up!"

Young Link and Pichu were annoying the passengers on the way to the Snowy Plains. They had been traveling through the incredibly vast countryside that was most of this world for close to an hour.

"Just calm down. We're almost there," said Peach.

"This is boring! How much longer do we have to sit in here?" said a grumpy Ganondorf.

"A few more minutes. Stop whining," said Zelda, several seats behind him.

Kirby looked up from out the window, observing Mewtwo flying above the bus.

"He's lucky he doesn't have to sit in here."

"I wouldn't worry about it," said Popo.

"He _is_ protecting this bus out of his own will," Marth chimed in.

"I didn't know that. I thought he had to," said Pikachu.

"Think we're actually gonna have fun when we get there?" Jigglypuff questioned Kirby.

"You _do_ know we're going to the Snowy Plains, right?"

"Yeah, okay, I get it."

"We're almost there," said Dr. Mario.

"Wait." Fox just noticed that the doctor was on board. "Why are _you_ coming?"

"The same reason I went before. Ice risks."

"Oh, yeah. That."

The bus was 5 minutes away from arrival.

"Everybody get your stuff on!" Peach called out. Each person that had brought along winter garments stood and put them on over their normal clothes. As the vehicle crossed into the Snowy Plains' territory, the ride became a bit rougher due to the snow and snow tires. Some of the Smashers looked out their windows. They saw the gently falling snow, the clear blue sky, and the brightly shining sun making the fallen snow sparkle with bits of yellow crystals. The snow atop every house mimicked the snow below.

They drove through a few streets to a small, empty bus terminal in the corner of the Snowy Village, where, upon arrival, the group got out the bus and stretched. They had been driving for almost an hour and a half, meaning that it was after 12:00.

"Ah! Feels great to be off that bus!" said Pichu.

"I'm opening the luggage compartment. Come get your stuff," Peach said, doing as she stated. The group gathered their things.

"Who's going to the slope?" Pichu asked aloud, holding a small cymbal (he found out about its potential from a movie).

Ness, Young Link, the Ice Climbers, Yoshi, DK, Pikachu, Mario, Luigi, and Dr. Mario headed for the slope.

"Where are you headed?" Kirby asked Jigglypuff.

"Um…I guess I'll go into town. You?"

Kirby nodded.

"I'm going into town as well," Peach added. "Who else is going?"

Samus, Link, Marth, Roy, Fox, Falco, Mr. Game & Watch, Captain Falcon, and Zelda replied. Bowser, Ganondorf, and Mewtwo stayed behind with the bus, where Mewtwo watched over the area. Bowser and Ganondorf spoke of miscellaneous evil things.

"It's nice to get out like this once in a while," said Link, promptly followed by several beeps and buzzes from Mr. Game & Watch.

"Yeah," Falcon agreed.

"There aren't too many people out today. Wonder why," said Marth, looking around.

The group was walking to the center of the village, its plaza. During their walk, they had only encountered 3 villagers (one of those being a little kid asking for Falcon's autograph). Also, while walking, they noticed the snowfall had increased quite a bit, but it didn't hinder their progress any.

Upon arrival, the group saw a considerable amount of people moving about, but still less than they were used to.

"Now what?" asked Samus.

"Let's separate and meet back at the bus at 2:30. It's 1:10 now. See you!" Peach said. The group agreed and split up. Most went further into town, except for Kirby and Jigglypuff.

"Where to now?" asked Jigglypuff.

"Let's see what's going on at the slope," said Kirby.

The two walked the short distance to the slope, where 11 of the 26 were located. Upon arrival, they saw 9 of the 11 sledding. Ness wasn't sledding.

He was wincing, sitting by Dr. Mario near a cabin.

"What happened to him?" Jigglypuff asked the doctor.

"He sprained his ankle pretty bad. He's sitting out for a little while. Just gave him a pill. Should be back to normal within half an hour."

"Doc…" Ness said. "Why don't you make your Megavitamins smaller?"

"If I did, they wouldn't be very mega, would they?" Dr. Mario sipped his hot chocolate. Ness sighed and lied in the snow. Jigglypuff giggled.

"Everybody else is doing fine," observed Kirby.

"I have an idea!" Pichu yelled, his little voice echoing. "How 'bout we have a little race?"

"Yeah! We actually haven't tried that yet," Luigi said, climbing the slope.

"Everyone bring your sleds to the top! We're having a race!" Young Link shouted.

Each person brought their sleds to the slope's peak and aligned them. All of them differed though the majority of them were bobsleds. Young Link had a small, wooden bobsled. DK's was much like Young Link's but, obviously, larger. Yoshi had a green, plastic one with his trademark egg as his emblem. Mario's "sled" was actually a red, plastic donut with an "M" on the front. Luigi's was identical save for the green and the "L". Pikachu's was a very small, yellow, plastic bobsled. Pichu of course had his trusty cymbal. The Ice Climbers had a two-seated toboggan that was plastic and separated at the middle with two different colors in the back and front (blue in front, pink in back).

"Whoever gets to that red line down there first wins," said Dr. Mario.

Everyone looked at the red line in the snow at the base of the slope. Mysteriously, no one had really seen it.

"You had this planned?" asked Jigglypuff.

"Is there a reason you didn't start it earlier?" an angry Ness asked.

"We're doing it again later, when your ankle heals," Dr. Mario assured.

Ness groaned as the countdown began.

"3…2…1…"

There was brief silence. Everybody looked at Dr. Mario, who was sipping his hot chocolate.

"Ah. Go!"

The racers pushed their sleds a bit, jumped on, and the race began. Because Pichu and the Mario Bros. needed the least start-up time, they took the lead.

"Gotta watch it. They could take me out of the race any second…but they have to catch me first!" Pichu exclaimed, taking a slight lead over Mario. Luigi followed close behind. 2 seconds after him was Pikachu, then the Ice Climbers, DK, Young Link, and lastly, Yoshi.

"We're not catching up to them…" said Popo.

"Yeah. He's pretty nimble with that cymbal. Hey, that rhymed!" Nana said, laughing.

Pichu sped towards the finish, with Mario right beside him.

"Wonder which one of them will win?" said DK.

A photo finish for the ages. Pichu, Mario, and Luigi seemed to cross the finish line at the same time. The Ice Climbers, DK, Young Link, Pikachu, and Yoshi followed, in that order.

"Can you tell who won?" asked Kirby.

"Hard to say. We're gonna have to have a tiebreaker race to see-"

"Hey Doc!" Pichu yelled, interrupting the doctor. "Who won that?"

"You three are having a tiebreaker, cause I couldn't tell!" the doctor yelled back. "Are you two staying to see?"

Kirby looked at Jigglypuff. "Want to?"

"Nah…Ness, good luck. See ya." Jigglypuff walked towards the mountain protruding from the center of the plains, which caused one to think why exactly they called this place the Plains. Kirby followed her across the top of the slope. He knew where they were headed. The Scenery Cave.

* * *

The mountain was the base of all attractions of the Snowy Plains, as well as the source of all the snow. The Scenery Cave was a part of this mountain. Basically, it is a large cave halfway up the mountain where one can see an entire side of the Plains, along with an extensive view of the rest of the Smash Bros. World. People can choose to either take a lift up to the cave or walk along a path circling the mountain. Most chose the walk, as well as Jigglypuff and Kirby. It took them 20 minutes total to reach their destination, which, to their surprise, was vacant. Deciding to enjoy the peace and quiet, they sat in the snow at the cave's entrance and gazed at the gorgeous scenery.

"Never get tired of seeing this," Kirby said.

"The scenery is always so pretty," Jigglypuff said.

Beyond their little winter paradise, there laid a grassy, sunny, summer land. It was like being inside a snow globe.

"Can I ask you a question?"

"Of course."

"How many spirits are left?"

"3."

"What happens when all of them are gone?"

"That's a very good question."

"You don't know either?"

"I thought you had _a _question."

"Oh. Sorry."

"…I try not to think about it."

"Why?"

"I have the strongest feeling…the end of this journey won't be a completely happy ending."

"Oh…"

"So let's not talk about it. Please."

"Fine…"

There was an uncomfortable moment of silence.

"This reminds me of something," Kirby finally said.

"Yeah, me too," Jigglypuff replied.

"The day we got together…"

They both stared at one another for about 5 seconds. Soon, Jigglypuff slowly scooted over and leaned on Kirby. They neither moved nor spoke for several minutes. They could've gone longer, had not Chisakumaki and Sukama been seen flying towards them on the Spirit Cloud.

"What do they want?" Jigglypuff stood up, almost mad at the two.

Chisakumaki and Sukama stopped in front of the cave.

"Jigglypuff, we have a hunch about these plains," said Sukama.

"What kind of hunch?" asked Jigglypuff.

"We believe that Crystal, The Spirit of Snow, resides near this mountain. Probably the summit," said Chisakumaki.

"If she is, this entire world could be in deep trouble," added Sukama.

"We should go check," Kirby said, standing up.

Jigglypuff didn't want something like this happening to her on her day of relaxation. But she didn't have any options. Her destiny was to find and destroy the Seven Smash Spirits and bring peace to the Smash Bros. World. Even if it meant all in the same day.

Jigglypuff and Kirby jumped onto the Spirit Cloud and headed for the mountain's zenith. When they reached it, Jigglypuff was amazed. The large summit was numbingly cold and visibility was incredibly messed up due to the increased snowfall. Unfortunately for the Spirit Hunter, it was also a suitable area for a spirit battle.

"I don't see her anywhere," Kirby said, looking around.

"Well, she _is _a spirit. And this snow doesn't help at all," said Chisakumaki.

"Are we waiting or what?" asked Jigglypuff.

"It'd be best if we did," suggested Sukama.

The group waited several minutes with no results. The hat's light kept Jigglypuff and Kirby warm (they were close together). Just when they were about to leave, the snow grew even fiercer. Kirby spotted a distant bright light. The others soon spotted it as well, and stared at it. After a while, a figure came into view, which did nothing but stand there for a good while. Then it raised its arms.

"Yep, that's definitely Crystal," said Chisakumaki.

"Do you know what she's doing?" asked Jigglypuff, who couldn't tell.

"I think she's trying to freeze the Plains over, then the rest of the world."

"Anything we can do to stop her?"

"We?" asked Sukama.

"Oh, right. Well…at least I won't get trapped this time."

Jigglypuff jumped off the cloud. She landed in the deep snow (4 inches) and trudged ahead a few feet. Several times, she almost tripped. Soon, she stopped, about 3 meters away from her opponent.

"Crystal!"

Crystal lowered her arms and slowly turned around. She wore an extremely large, crystallized farthingale, a glowing, crystallized tiara, and shone like a star (like some sort of ice princess). She looked in her mid-20s and was totally human in form, except for her eyes, which lacked pupils and irises. Her hair was also incredibly long and crystallized.

"I've been waiting…Seems you finally found me," her voice echoed.

"What are you doing? How come this is your base instead of a battle arena, like the others?"

"This height is perfect for wreaking direct havoc on this world of yours."

"You think I'm gonna let you do that?"

"I'm afraid you're too late to stop me, puffball."

Jigglypuff's hat shone brighter.

"…You're that serious? You're gonna battle me in this blizzard-like snow?"

"I have to."

"Oh? That all? Still, I highly doubt your chances of succeeding to seal me away."

"I'm not backing down. As inconvenient as this is…I have a job to do."

"They're about to battle. Let's hope this snow doesn't slow her down too much," said Sukama.

"This is your job?" asked Crystal. "Prepare to become unemployed!"

* * *

Jigglypuff and Crystal prepared for battle, as the others could only watch.

"Do you think this battle will attract a lot of attention?" asked Kirby.

"Not likely. There's tons of snow up here and down there. The only possible way they could be spotted is if they do an aerial battle. Jigglypuff should've figured that out," said Chisakumaki.

"Who attacks first?" asked Crystal.

"Let's not go all formal _now_," answered Jigglypuff.

"Bad decision."

A small shockwave spread out from Crystal's body.

"What happened? What was that?" Kirby asked quickly.

"My feet…what's wrong with…?" Jigglypuff looked down at her extremely cold feet. They were encased in ice blocks. She was rendered immobile. She couldn't fly because the ice made her heavier.

"She can't move. At this rate she'll be frozen solid," said Sukama.

"Come on, Jigglypuff! Use your head!" urged Kirby from a distance.

_Crap. What now?_

Jigglypuff got an idea. She began thinking about the battle she had with Volcanis when her destiny began taking shape. She thought about the Ring of Fire, and about the cyclone of fire and lava she was trapped in. As she thought, the hat shone a brighter and brighter red. As the hat shone, Jigglypuff's body became hotter and hotter. The ice blocks that were her feet soon melted. The snowflakes landed all over her round body and immediately flowed down to the ground, making it look like she was sweating.

"I was hoping to see this. Your hat's full power," Crystal said.

"F.Y.I, this is only a little of a lot."

"Don't hold it back. Show me your maximum potential."

"Every bad person that said that eventually died."

Crystal chuckled slightly. She seemed to be sounding more and more malevolent as time passed.

"Enough talk. Time for you to freeze."

She launched several icicles from both palms. Jigglypuff cartwheeled and back flipped, dodging each one and creating an erratic path in the snow.

The snowfall grew fiercer.

Crystal created a giant snowflake with her right arm and threw it like a Frisbee at the Spirit Hunter. It moved surprisingly fast and it was likely sharp. She ducked to avoid it.

"That thing almost killed her!" exclaimed Kirby. Chisakumaki and Sukama slowly turned to look at him. "What?"

The snowflake acted as a boomerang and headed towards Jigglypuff again, but at a lower altitude. Since she couldn't duck this time, she hopped instead. But there was a problem. As soon as the snowflake got under her, it hovered there, letting her land on it.

"Why'd it stop? Oh…" Jigglypuff frantically tried to jump off, but she was too late. The snowflake rose high into the air at an enormous speed.

"Foolish creature…" Crystal looked up and enjoyed the show.

"We have to go after her again!" Kirby said.

"Not this time. It's going way too fast for even me to catch it," said Sukama.

"Whatever…" Kirby muttered.

"When I'm done with her, you three…" Crystal pointed to the Spirit Cloud as she spoke. "You three are dead."

Jigglypuff was ground to the snowflake because of gravity. Also, due to the increasing height and the temperature of the snowflake and the environment, she began to freeze over, even though she was heated. She couldn't move, oxygen denied her, and thinking became a big problem.

"How is that thing still living? As persistent as that…Chisakimaku was. I'll just end this right now." Crystal's aura became 5 times brighter.

"Jigglypuff, get off, before you freeze to death…" Chisakumaki prayed.

The snowflake formed an ice cage over the periled puffball. It started closing in. Jigglypuff was already half-frozen. But in her dying mind, she had a thought left. She didn't want to lose. She couldn't. Not that easily, she wouldn't. At death's door, she shut her eyes. Her hat shone a fiery red, brighter than it had been. When her eyes opened, they were of flame. A red energy surrounded her. Each piece of ice that Jigglypuff was near shattered to pieces.

She flew back towards Crystal at high speed.

"She made it!" Kirby cheered. Everyone looked up at the falling fireball.

"What? I don't remember _this_ at all!" Crystal said, both astonished and worried.

Jigglypuff hovered above ground, creating a broad zone of melted snow.

"What'd I tell you? You wanted my full potential, right? You should've listened…"

Crystal took a step back. "Shut up! Just die!" She fired a concentrated beam of ice at Jigglypuff. All she did was raise her arm to catch the beam. Upon impact, she let out a stream of fire, destroying the beam and blasting Crystal.

She let out a loud shriek, which, from the ears of everyone in the Plains, sounded like a distant bird.

"No! It can't be the end! Not yet!"

"Yes, this match is over." Jigglypuff walked towards her, still hitting her with the flaming stream. These flames soon enveloped her. When this happened, Jigglypuff stopped the stream, and Crystal began to rise high into the air. Then, she separated into tiny ice crystals and was sucked into the hat. Jigglypuff's fiery energies dissipated and the snowfall returned to normal.

That was it. The Spirit of Snow was no more. The Spirit Cloud flew over to the exhausted, panting Spirit Hunter.

"You gonna be okay?" asked Kirby.

"Yeah…in time…Time! We gotta get back to the bus!" Jigglypuff realized.

"Let's go," said Chisakumaki.

The four left the summit. Jigglypuff was happier now than after the other battles. Two left. And _no_ tornadoes were used at all.

* * *

By the time they reached the bus it was 2:25, 5 minutes before departure. Jigglypuff and Kirby weren't spotted because Bowser & Ganondorf had fallen asleep inside the bus. Chisakumaki and Sukama were gone by the time Mewtwo noticed that they had returned. They didn't know he knew.

"_How was your battle?_"

"...Only 2 left. This world will be fine soon," Jigglypuff answered.

"_Good job. The others will be coming in a few minutes, so you might as well enter._"

They did as they had been told, which was what they were aiming for anyway. They sat in the same seat they came in, with Jigglypuff at the window. Both were tired, especially Jigglypuff. They stared out the window, with Jigglypuff's eyes halfway open.

"I have _another _question."

"What is it?" Jigglypuff's voice was soft.

"What are you gonna do when we get back?"

"I gotta go back…to the fountain. I can sense its glow from here."

"Meaning what, exactly?"

"I can find out more about the past…That's what it does."

"Oh."

Pretty soon, Smashers began putting away their sleds and boarding the bus. The noise of the people and the rumbling of the bus's motor didn't bother the two. Within minutes, both had fallen asleep. Jigglypuff felt a special kind of warmth inside her all the way back to the Manor.

_Okay. First of three. Took too long, I know…I can't help it sometimes…_


	12. Chisakumaki's Promise

_Yes, this took a while. And yes, I should be writing M-I-X instead, but I have a feeling this'll be faster, if only slightly. This chapter has some romance and a battle, so…yeah. Read on._

"We're here! Everybody off!"

These words, spoken by Peach, were the ones that woke up our duo. Jigglypuff and Kirby were the last ones to leave the bus. When they entered the Manor, they went into Jigglypuff's room.

"Why didn't you leave yet?" Kirby asked, not bothering to sit.

"I gotta put my stuff away first. You coming too?" Jigglypuff asked, putting her scarf on her bed.

"Of course I am."

Before the two left, Jigglypuff noticed that it was 3:42. She didn't know why that information seemed so important, but she memorized it.

"You're finding out the secrets of her past for your own benefit, right?" asked Kirby as they exited the Manor.

"Truthfully, I don't know why. I just do it," Jigglypuff answered.

"That's not a surprise. I don't know why I'm coming with you. I think I just need the experience."

"You know what else you don't know?"

"What?"

"Why you ask so many questions?"

"…Uh…"

"Hold on."

The two stopped. A calm, quiet breeze passed by them. They sniffed the air, this time welcoming the scent of chocolate. Jigglypuff began running to the fountain, with Kirby close behind. Upon reaching the fountain, they saw the dark brown glow. The chocolate glow.

"Does this mean something?" Kirby asked.

"I can't figure it out yet, but I bet the scents and the colors link to the images I see."

"So…"

"Just stare into the water until you start to fade."

The two walked over to the fountain and they both stared into the water. Soon, they both began to fade away. Kirby was a bit scared, but he didn't run away or expose his fear. He stayed with Jigglypuff.

"We're going now," she said.

Everything went black.

* * *

When the two regained sight, they were, of course, by the fountain. The sun was fixing to set. Torches were being lit in certain areas of the village. Kirby now had many questions. Jigglypuff guessed this and began to tell facts that would answer them.

"We've gone 700 years into the past. That village is where Chisakimaku and Sukama live. Chisakimaku is the princess/protector of that village. The Seven Smash Spirits are on their way to confront and destroy her and the village. I still don't know why. Does that help?"

"Yeah. Thanks."

"Hold on to me. We're gonna look for them." Jigglypuff made her hat glow sky blue. The rainbow surrounding the village concerned Kirby, but he trusted Jigglypuff's judgment and grabbed her arm. She began to rise, and within seconds they were headed towards the village. Unfortunately, Kirby soon discovered Jigglypuff's method of getting around or avoiding its rainbow.

"Wait! We can't go through-"

"I've been here twice, and yeah, we can go through everything."

"So we're phantoms, basically. Can't be seen, heard, or touched."

"Yep."

"You left that part out."

"Well…"

They entered the village and the search for Chisakumaki and/or Sukama began. Their search had lasted for about an hour, when the sun had already checked out. Kirby was still stunned at the thought of being in a time centuries before theirs. He spent most of the search asking questions that Jigglypuff easily answered. Soon they had realized that neither of the two was in the village, which wasn't much (if at all) of a shock to Jigglypuff.

"They're not here…Let's try the well," she said, flying towards the site of the future Smash Bros. Manor. When the two arrived, they noticed how dark it truly was. Chisakumaki & Sukama were there, though. They were both standing over the wishing well, gazing into it.

"Why did you bring me here?" asked Chisakumaki.

"Can you feel the energy?" Sukama asked, his eyes closed.

"No. Not a whole lot, anyway. There was always at least a bit of energy…"

"This force keeps reaching me. Even after I come here, it's like it still wants me to return. Like it's begging."

"Have you ever made a wish here before?"

"I have…"

"Sounds like the reason. You may be the only one who can feel it, cause of-"

"I don't know. It would help if it gave me some sort of sign, like last time."

"What did you wish for?"

Sukama looked at Chisakumaki. "Huh?"

"Your wish. What was it?"

"I wished for you. For your eternal safety."

Chisakumaki was deeply touched, but still concerned.

"When you made that wish, what did you see?"

"You. What I wished for."

"Well, many thanks for the wish. I greatly appreciate it."

"Like I said before, you are my only friend. My only true friend. For the time being, I want to keep it that way."

"That's bad for you."

"What do you mean?"

"Let's put it this way. What would you do if you found out that I was gone? I just up and left. No traces. What would you do then?"

"I try not to think about it."

"You should start. No one can live with one true friend."

"You sure?"

Chisakumaki realized that Sukama was one of those survivors. As was she.

"Okay, no one can live well with one true friend."

"Even if I wanted another friend, it would be extremely hard to find one. I'm too…different. We're too different. To others, but not each other."

"You think we're not meant to have other friends?"

"Exactly."

"That's not true!" Chisakumaki and Jigglypuff said at the same time.

"Apparently it was, back then," Kirby said.

"…You're saying we'll never find others-"

"I never say never."

"Good. The word is too discouraging. Still, we shouldn't give up hope yet. It may take decades, centuries even, but we will find other friends. Guaranteed."

"…Sure. If I was back home, this wouldn't be so complex."

"Aren't you happy here?"

"It's a mix. I'm happy, and I'm downright miserable. As long as you're in my presence, I'm happy. Otherwise…"

"All these years of being an outcast, I'd probably-"

"You were about to say never, weren't you?"

"Well, I wouldn't think I'd be a beacon of happiness for anybody."

"What can I say? There's hope for everybody, I guess."

"Yeah…"

"They must've been real sad before they found each other. Like me before Chisakimaku," said Jigglypuff.

"She is a beacon of happiness after all," added Kirby.

"Are we done here or what?" Chisakumaki asked.

"Yeah. C'mon." Sukama and Chisakumaki flew to the fountain, with Jigglypuff and Kirby doing the same. Sukama and Chisakumaki sat on the bench; Jigglypuff and Kirby sat in front of the bench and watched. What'll happen next?

"I plan on going back home when my wings develop," Sukama started.

"Uh-huh."

"I won't lie and say that I'll miss this place. But I'll miss you and my foster parents a whole lot."

"Do you want to miss me?"

"Of course not. Why?"

"I plan on leaving this village too. I want to be a free spirit, in the literal sense."

"I get it."

"Why don't we go together? Is that a problem?"

"I should be asking you that. Won't the villagers need you? What about your parents?"

"You say that like you're leaving forever."

"Yeah."

"That doesn't matter a bit! The Spirit Cloud should be able to make the flight up there. You don't even have to wait to leave! We could just-"

"No. I want to stay and see my wish fulfilled, first. It'd be better if I waited here."

"I'll still go with you. I don't care how long you stay. I'll forever be by your side."

Kirby made fake gagging noises.

"I know what's coming next," Jigglypuff eagerly said.

"You promise?" Sukama asked.

"You know I keep my promises."

"Well, you could give me some sort of seal…?"

"Hmm…"

Chisakumaki suddenly giggled. "I got it. The perfect seal."

Sukama, along with Kirby, realized what she meant. Chisakumaki leaned over slowly, almost hesitantly, to Sukama's cheek, and kissed it. Immediately afterwards, Sukama felt a warm, prolonged feeling in his heart. This, he believed, must be the reminder that they would soon travel together, forever.

"How long will this feeling last?" he asked out of curiosity.

"As long as it takes. That's not a problem, right?"

Sukama chuckled and put his arm around Chisakumaki. He softly squeezed her.

"Not at all. I'm grateful, to be honest."

"Good…"

Jigglypuff rose. Kirby slowly did the same. They both felt that their time in this time was coming to a close. The two began to fade. They were silent as everything went black.

* * *

By the time the two returned, the sun was fixing to set for real. The fountain's glow and scent had vanished, and now, Jigglypuff had some questions to ask. Unlike earlier, she was no longer riddled with them.

The two traveled back to the Manor. On the way to Jigglypuff's room, they met and greeted Luigi, Peach, Samus, Pichu, and Fox. When they reached the room, Jigglypuff opened her window, and then the couple waited on the bed for Sukama & Chisakimaku/Chisakumaki to visit. They said nothing for a few minutes. During those minutes, Kirby formulated a question, which he soon and abruptly asked:

"What are you gonna do when you're done?"

The question caught her off-guard, and she was partially startled.

"Huh? What?" she asked rapidly.

"When this is all over, what are you gonna do next?"

Jigglypuff thought for a little while. Then:

"I guess things will return to normal again. Life will once again become boring as hell."

"I guess…"

Finally, Chisakumaki and Sukama arrived outside the window on the Spirit Cloud.

"Hi guys," Jigglypuff greeted.

"Hi," the other couple said.

"I don't have to tell you what I saw, do I?"

"Of course not. I know," Chisakumaki answered.

"Any questions that either of you have, we'll try to answer," Sukama added.

"First question." Jigglypuff sat up. "Sukama, do you still have that feeling you were talking about?"

"It's yet to leave me. Been there for centuries now. Actually, it was the feeling that helped me regain my sanity."

"Regain? When was it lost?"

"When Chisakumaki was sealed away, at the expense of my wish, I basically lost it. I won't go into details. But, every night, before I went to sleep, and while I slept, her promise reminded me that she'd be back. And as soon as the Spirit Search ceases, we will travel the skies, and anywhere else we want to go."

Jigglypuff realized what that meant.

"So…I'll never see you again…"

"Don't be so sure!" Chisakumaki said.

"What do you mean?" Kirby asked.

"No matter where we go or what we see, we simply can't forget this place. You'll be seeing us for the rest of your lives!"

This was nothing short of relieving news for the both of them.

"Well, we'll see you a little later, if not tomorrow," said Sukama.

"Chisakumaki? Do you have any recollection of being a princess yet?" Jigglypuff asked.

"You're asking the wrong form. Bye!"

The Spirit Cloud rose into the sky quickly.

"Now what?" Kirby asked. Jigglypuff looked at the clock on her dresser. It was 5:07. Because of this hour-and 25-minute leap ahead in time, Jigglypuff wouldn't have to wait too long to get tired. But what to do…?

"The sky room?"

After 20 minutes, Jigglypuff and Kirby, as well a few other couples, the Ice Climbers (no one knew their relationship), and Sandbag (…) left the sky room and did other things to pass the time. Our couple, unfortunately, couldn't think of anything else to do. And then, this happened:

"_Kirby, Jigglypuff. You two have a match against Fox and Falco in 5 minutes,_" Mewtwo informed.

"Really? A team battle?" the two said in unison.

"_5 minutes,_" Mewtwo repeated before he vanished. The team cheered and went to wait in the Royal Room.

"So, how do you think this is gonna work out?" Kirby asked. "This is one of the more dangerous teams."

"In their favor, of course. With any luck, we'll be fighting someplace small or with walls on the ground, like Flat Zone, Onett, or either Mushroom Kingdom. Then our backward throws can help us at least a little."

"Or the right items! As long as we don't throw them or fire them at them…"

"In either case, our chances are slim. We need to press our attacks."

"Okay."

3-and-a-half minutes left.

Fox and Falco came downstairs silently. They sat down and waited along with Jigglypuff and Kirby. None of the four spoke.

2 minutes left.

Fox suddenly stood up.

"We should leave," he said.

"You know where we're fighting?" asked Jigglypuff.

"Onett," Falco answered.

"We still have a chance, right?" Kirby asked his partner.

"Don't consider it," Falco said, being himself.

"I wasn't asking you!" Kirby snapped.

"Come on, you guys. Let's go," Fox said, walking outside. Falco said nothing and followed him. Jigglypuff and Kirby followed him.

* * *

By the time the four had reached Onett, it was 5:41.

"Kirby, what's going on? What are the rules?"

Again, Jigglypuff had forgotten her monitor.

"We're the blue team, obviously. All items on medium. 3-minute timed match. SD's don't count. Normal damage ratio. Friendly fire off. This'll be fun."

"Are you puffballs ready yet?" Fox asked.

"Yeah!" Kirby answered.

"Ready?"

Fox was above the tree. Falco and Kirby were above the drug store awning. Jigglypuff was above the red lines.

"GO!"

Kirby swallowed Falco immediately. When Falco emerged, he kicked Kirby, threw him upward, and blasted him. Fox attempted to use Fire Fox on Jigglypuff, but he was kicked hard. She then went to Falco, who was on the road, and put him to sleep. When he woke up, Jigglypuff was gone, and a van knocked him upwards. Kirby followed him and kicked him out of the stage.

Jigglypuff: 3 percent. Kirby: 19 percent. Fox: 22 percent.

2-and-a-half minutes remained.

Now Falco was mad. As soon as he revived, he knocked Jigglypuff upward with his Reflector, jumped, hit her with a Fire Bird, and then grabbed and punched Kirby. Fox kicked Jigglypuff further up, almost KO'ing her. Falco held Kirby and Fox shot him repeatedly in the back. Falco threw him into Jigglypuff.

A Beam Sword fell into the tree. Jigglypuff, who was the closest, grabbed it and pummeled Fox with it, behind the house to the left. Kirby tried to use Final Cutter on Falco, but it was Reflected, and the car Falco jumped over hit Kirby. He flew into Falco's downward aerial, which quickly became a Forward Smash, and was KO'd.

Jigglypuff: 43 percent. Fox: 67 percent. Falco: 0 percent.

1 minute & 45 seconds remained.

Kirby swallowed Falco and spit him at Fox, following up with an upward aerial to KO him. Jigglypuff Pounded Falco 3 times in a row. She then grabbed him and launched him upward. Fox tried to save him, but it was too late. Jigglypuff performed Rest on the airborne Falco and easily KO'd him.

A taxi hit Fox, while Kirby blocked. A Crate appeared in the street, and a Pokeball appeared on the drug store's lower awning. Kirby grabbed the Pokeball and hit Falco with it (Falco was still invincible however). Jigglypuff tried to hit Fox with the Crate, but he blocked it with his Reflector. Luckily, it exploded.

Jigglypuff: 43 percent. Kirby: 0 percent. Fox: 98 percent. Falco: 0 percent.

1 minute remained.

A Ho-oh emerged from the ball. Jigglypuff held Fox while Kirby swallowed Falco. He released Falco when the Sacred Fire was unleashed, burning the Red Team perfectly. The Blue Team used their upward aerials to KO their opponents; Jigglypuff KO'd Fox and Kirby KO'd Falco.

"We won," Jigglypuff said with a huff.

40 seconds remained.

Fox and Falco, putting their invincibility to use, barraged and KO'd Jigglypuff.

30 seconds.

Kirby grabbed a nearby Home-Run Bat. Falco used Falco Phantasm on him to make him drop it. Jigglypuff then grabbed it and struck Falco from behind. Kirby held Falco and Jigglypuff scored a free Home Run. Immediately after the blow, the puffballs were hit by a Bob-omb.

15 seconds.

When the two landed, they were hit by a van. Kirby was KO'd.

10 seconds.

"You should just give up now!" Jigglypuff said, trying to stall time.

"Yeah! Time's almost up anyway!" contributed Kirby.

"5!"

"You did good," Falco said.

"4!"

"Thanks," the Blue Team said.

"3!"

"We can admit defeat, but-"

"2!"

"I want a rematch, you & me!" Fox managed to say.

"1!"

Jigglypuff nodded.

"Time!"

_

* * *

_Once again, Pichu was waiting for the four at the front door.

"How'd the match go? How'd the match go?" he asked excitedly.

"Those two puffed-up punks actually beat us," Falco said, walking to his room.

"Cool! Peach is making dinner now, so you guys should just relax," said Pichu.

The three walked inside. Kirby stared at his Smash Coin in awe and admiration. Proof positive. Jigglypuff and Kirby ruled. It smelled like Peach was cooking chicken. Fried chicken. Cabbage too. Rice and…a salad. (Jigglypuff could smell the dressing.) This dinner would be good, and she promised herself that she'd stay up and enjoy it with the others. She'd been away from them for quite some time, and it felt strange.

"Your room?" asked Kirby.

"Yeah…"

The two walked to said room. It was empty now, but was occupied earlier. Her bed was made and anything else out of order was straightened up. Peach had visited. Jigglypuff sat on her bed and looked at the clock. It was 6:11. Kirby sat alongside her.

"When are they coming back?" Jigglypuff asked nobody.

"So what now? We just wait?"

"Yep." Jigglypuff stretched out.

Several minutes passed. By the time Chisakimaku and Sukama arrived, it was 6:20.

"Where were you guys?" Jigglypuff asked with closed eyes.

"Sleeping, chi!" Chisakimaku answered.

"Lucky you. I promised myself I'd stay up."

"There's only two spirits left. How do you plan to handle it?" asked Sukama.

"How I always have. Luck with a pinch of…me."

"I think Kirby's sleeping, chi."

Kirby had fallen asleep 2 minutes ago.

"He'll wake up soon."

"Dinnertime! Dinner's ready!" Peach called out from downstairs. Kirby sprang up and shot out the room like a bullet.

"Never fails." Jigglypuff stood. "Talk to you guys later, probably after dinner."

When Jigglypuff got downstairs, Captain Falcon, Link, Luigi, Pikachu, Pichu, Roy, Fox, Bowser, Yoshi, and DK were at or approaching the table. Kirby, of course, was also there.

"This is gonna be soooooo good!" Pichu said.

"Jigglypuff, nice of you to finally join us," Bowser said.

"Shut up," Jigglypuff replied.

Mr. Game & Watch, Mario, Mewtwo, the Ice Climbers, Ganondorf, and Falco came to the table.

"Jigglypuff. Finally chose to dine with the rest of your co-workers, it seems," Ganondorf said while Bowser chuckled.

"Leave her be," Link said.

"She did nothing to any of us, so stop it," Roy added. Ganondorf frowned and grumbled. Link and Roy are a formidable pair, as he and Bowser realized earlier that day.

Samus arrived at the table, helmet-less, though still wearing her Power Suit. She didn't say a word.

Young Link, Dr. Mario, Ness, & Marth arrived. Dinner could begin. The plates began to come out of the kitchen, assisted by magic. 3 bowls of rice, 5 bowls of salad, 8 bowls of cabbage, and 6 bowls of mixed pieces of fried chicken slowly hovered out the kitchen and landed in the middle of the long table. 26 plates (Mr. Game & Watch's already had food on it) fell in front of 26 chairs. Drinks, condiments, and napkins also fell onto the table. The hungry Smashers (well, some of them) cheered. Peach and Zelda walked out of the kitchen, taking their own seats.

"Everybody dig in!" Peach said.

Each of them took different amounts of food, except the Ice Climbers. (I won't get into full detail, for length purposes.) Jigglypuff took 3 legs, 3 scoops of rice, and 2 scoops of cabbage. Kirby took 3 times what she had. Dinner went by slowly, without much open conversation. Those who knew each other talked to each other. By 7:13, everyone had finished eating. Only 2 bowls of salad, half of the cabbage, and a chicken wing remained. All of the plates, glasses, cups, and bowls were escorted back into the kitchen. The others went to handle their business. Jigglypuff was tired, and wanted this whole thing to end, so she decided to sleep early. Kirby had already left for a match with Mr. Game & Watch.

When she got to her room, Chisakimaku and Sukama had already gone as well. That settled it. Jigglypuff grabbed her hat from her dresser, turned off her lamp, and rested up for the sixth spirit battle.

It was almost done…

_This chapter, however, is. Finally._


	13. Short Circuit

_This is the second shortest spirit battle. However, 2 chapters from now will be the last and longest. It won't even be one chapter; it'll be separated into parts._

Chapter 13: Short Circuit

A loud boom awoke Jigglypuff from her slumber.

_Finally. It's here._ She sat up and looked out the window. The sky and the overall atmosphere seemed to be an omen. Circling, menacing, dark clouds veiled the once beautiful sky. Lightning bolts struck repeatedly onto various parts of the ground, generating random fires across the land. They had also cut the power to Electri-City and the Smash Bros. Manor, so it was as dark inside as outside. Jigglypuff grabbed her hat and put it on. It illuminated the darkened room. She left her room, noticing a long row of lit candles along the balcony. Candles were in the kitchen, the dining room, and the Royal Room as well.

_I shouldn't emit light. I don't need to._

The Manor, for some reason, was eerily silent. Jigglypuff felt a soft touch from behind her.

"Morning, Kirby," she said, making the hat's glow fade.

"It feels like nighttime. I wish I knew what time it was, but there's no clocks on," Kirby said.

It was 8:10 in the morning.

"Well, this sucks. Since there's no power, the elevators aren't working, so we can't get to the sky room. Hopefully, they'll get the hint and come to the window," said Jigglypuff.

"I wonder if anyone else is up," wondered Kirby.

"Let's not worry about it. We have somewhere to go."

"You had better hurry."

Kirby & Jigglypuff turned and saw Mewtwo, standing there.

"Don't…scare us like that," Kirby said, thankful that he lacked a heart.

"_Good luck._" With that, Mewtwo teleported away. The duo went in Jigglypuff's room and locked the door. The hat shone once more. Kirby opened the window.

"Now what?" he asked.

"We have to wait for those two to show up so we can leave," informed Jigglypuff.

The two waited for about 10 minutes, after which, Chisakimaku and Sukama arrived.

"You ready, chi?" asked Chisakimaku.

"That was kind of a stupid question, but I'm ready. C'mon Kirby." The two jumped onto the Spirit Cloud. Jigglypuff took Kirby's hand; the two became transparent. The cloud rose out of the Magic Seal with no trouble.

Jigglypuff stared in astonishment. It really looked like the world was coming to an end. There was a great increase in lightning bolts, which meant that there was also an increase in fires and light. Now Jigglypuff had a problem. She didn't know where the spirit could be. Kirby could tell this.

"Wait. What about Fourside? All that electricity would lure a lightning-based Smash Spirit, right?"

"…Wow. I didn't think about that. Thanks! Now let's get that spirit!" Jigglypuff exclaimed. The Spirit Cloud and Sukama took off just in time to avoid a lightning bolt. As the 4 sped, there was another bolt increase. These bolts, however, were homing in on the group.

"Company's coming fast!" Sukama said. He and the Spirit Cloud sped up further. Now lightning bolts tried to strike them from the front. Chisakimaku tried her hardest to dodge each one. But there was an onslaught.

One bolt struck Sukama's left wing, slightly paralyzing it. Several others struck the cloud, almost shattering its seal. They had to let the seal down anyway to catch Sukama, who was falling. With luck, they were able to. As they sped away, they neared the World Portals. Nothing had happened to them as of yet.

"That one! There!" Jigglypuff pointed to the Fourside portal. Just as they were within a miniscule number of feet from it, something surprised them. A lightning bolt struck from below. It carried the Spirit Cloud upward, like an electrified geyser. Then, another bolt struck from above. It and the "geyser" tried to crush the cloud like a pair of hands flattening clay.

"Any ideas?" Chisakimaku asked.

"Uh, get out? You take Sukama, and I'll take Kirby," Jigglypuff said. Her hat shone a bright sky-blue. She and Kirby turned transparent, and flew into the portal. Chisakimaku and Sukama left the cloud seconds before the seal broke and the lightning engulfed it. They followed their friends. The Spirit Cloud did a full loop and flew into the portal as well.

* * *

When the group arrived at Fourside, nothing at all was damaged. Actually, it was hard to tell, because there was no light. The only light sources were Jigglypuff's hat and the moon. They landed on top of the middle, tallest building. It was extremely difficult for Jigglypuff to avoid any sneak attacks of any sort. There was absolute silence. No sounds for several minutes.

Suddenly, a light flickered on and off in a background building. Still, no one spoke. But this made Jigglypuff more alert.

Another light flickered.

Then another.

This brought some distinct type of fear to Kirby and the Spirit Hunter. Within seconds, every light in the city flickered repeatedly. Jigglypuff was confused but alert. This continued for several more seconds, then abruptly ceased.

One minute passed.

All the lights in the city became blindingly bright, which was worse than the darkness (it would result in darkness either way due to the closed eyes). Jigglypuff tried to move back, but she received a painful jolt in her back. This forced her to move forward, giving her another shock. Thinking of her safety, she fell down.

_What the hell's shocking me?_

The lights dimmed and returned to normal. Jigglypuff, as usual, was in trouble. She was trapped inside an electric cage that was slowly shrinking. The group rushed to her aid, but stayed away from the electricity.

"Jigglypuff, can't you phase through this thing?" Kirby asked. Jigglypuff tried to, but was shocked again by the yellow electricity. She tried phasing through the actual building, but she didn't have enough focus.

"I tried my hardest and I still got trapped. But now I can't get out." Jigglypuff remained sitting.

"You'll just have to wait," said Sukama.

There was a light laughter that echoed throughout the city.

"Spirit Hunter! You'll never escape my trap!"

Electricity began to materialize in midair, right in front of Jigglypuff. In a matter of seconds, the spirit was formed. It looked like a 10-year-old, pale-skinned boy. He wore a simple black, short-sleeved T-shirt, a pair of blue jeans, and black running shoes. His hair was black, completely upright, and totally spiky. He constantly emitted electricity, and had bright yellow eyes. Also, he wasn't very tall; at most 4'2".

"I'm Circuit, the Spirit of Lightning, but everybody calls me Short Circuit. It's not fair!" he said.

"Well, you are pretty short, Circuit," said Jigglypuff.

"Shut up! You know, I could kill you right now." Sparks emitted from Circuit's eyes. "But I won't. I am a kid, after all. It's gonna be a lot of fun watching you suffer…suffering like my brothers and sister have…because of you!"

"They started it, I finished it. Simple as that. Ow!" Jigglypuff was shocked from behind.

"You won't be finishing me. If you do, I'll make sure you pay for what you did to the others first!"

The cage became smaller faster.

"Do you know what beats electricity, chi?" asked Chisakimaku.

"Yeah. I'll be fine," replied Jigglypuff.

When the cage tried to engulf her, it vanished.

"Hey! What happened to my cage?" said Circuit, angry and confused.

Jigglypuff's hat was glowing dark-brown.

"That's my brother's power you're harnessing…"

"I think he's mad," said Sukama.

"Really now?" answered Jigglypuff.

All of the city's lights grew so bright that they burst. The darkness had returned. But after a few seconds, the large amount of electricity emanating from Circuit provided for light. Thunder resounded throughout the area. Jigglypuff was incredibly open to attack, but she wasn't sure if it'd hurt or not.

"DIE!"

Lightning rained down on the group. Large concentrations of those bolts were for the Spirit Hunter. Chisakimaku, Sukama, and Kirby took shelter in the Spirit Cloud. Jigglypuff had no choice but to try and dodge them. She flew practically all over the artificial city trying to escape the rain. Even with all of her efforts, she was struck 3 times. The last 2 times actually hurt. Circuit noticed that, and halted the rain.

"I believe she's vulnerable now," Circuit said. 6 lightning bolts appeared right in front of Jigglypuff. Go ahead. Guess what they formed.

Another tornado.

Jigglypuff was getting severely electrocuted, as Circuit kept feeding the tornado with more and more bolts.

"Jigglypuff, I know you can get out of this. You've done it before," thought Kirby.

Jigglypuff tried to enable the powers of the earth to help her, but it all hurt too much. She had the hardest time yet focusing. She tried to work herself through it in her own mind.

_Can't lose now…only 2 left…must restore peace…must fight…I'm not supposed to die. I refuse. I will live. This world's not going anywhere…and neither am I!_ She found it.

Jigglypuff's hat emitted a shine so bright, the lightning became no longer visible to the group, including Circuit. The shine converted to a beam that shot upward, into the storm clouds no one could see. They evaporated upon contact. As they did, the beam became a column of light that shone for several seconds.

"Wait! What the hell is going on?" Circuit asked, moving back a few feet. The white light turned into a glowing blue. Everybody stared hard at it. Each of them could see water flowing upward.

"Great…I think I blew it," Circuit said.

The column of blue light dissipated, revealing Jigglypuff with a watery blue hat. She looked rather serious. She pointed directly at Circuit.

"Give up" was all she said. Circuit shot a lightning bolt at Jigglypuff, fast as…well, lightning. She caught, infused it with water, and shot it back at Circuit, who was knocked into a building…fast as lightning.

"Yeah, this battle will be over soon," Sukama said.

"Now you're using my sister's power against me! Cut it out, or else." Circuit's hands became completely yellow, and his eyes sparked.

Jigglypuff chuckled. "Like I said before…" Her entire body began to glow blue. "Give up."

Circuit growled and fired a huge ball of electricity at his opponent with both hands. It engulfed Jigglypuff. Circuit was happy. Then he noticed that her glow began to slightly outshine the ball's glow. Circuit was worried. The mass of wet electricity flew towards him at high speed, striking him right in his abdomen and creating a miniature explosion. Circuit was hurt.

Jigglypuff threw him onto one of the main buildings (the right-most building). Circuit slowly stood up, dazed. Jigglypuff raised both of her arms, and in a split-second, Circuit was trapped in a cylinder of water. It seemed to extend forever upward, so he didn't try to escape it. He couldn't pass through it either; when he tried, he shocked himself.

He was scared.

There was a faint rumbling from below.

"Now what?" Circuit whimpered slightly.

The rumbling became louder with each passing second. Circuit looked down. A giant geyser engulfed him and carried him upward. Lightning spewed out in all directions. The source rose higher and higher. In about 15 seconds, Circuit was back on the floor, on his stomach, coughing up water. The cylinder disappeared. Jigglypuff stood right by Circuit's head.

"Well, you fought good. Believe it or not, I really don't want to seal you."

"No…" Circuit needed to get up, but he was too drained. "I have to beat you…for the others…"

"You fought for the right reason with the wrong Pokemon. Sorry, but you have to go!"

Jigglypuff's hat flashed. Circuit was propelled slightly upward by a burst of water, and then blasted into the building behind him. She held the water blast for a few seconds. It turned into a beam of blue light. Circuit didn't scream at all.

"Now you'll be reunited with the rest of your family. There's only one more…"

The light soon enveloped Circuit, much like the fire that enveloped Crystal previously. Circuit glowed bright yellow, releasing massive lightning bolts into the atmosphere. He then disintegrated, his yellow sparks hovering in midair for several seconds. Each one was vacuumed into Jigglypuff's hat. The battle was over.

Only 1 spirit remained.

"She did it, chi!" cheered Chisakimaku.

The Spirit Cloud flew to Jigglypuff. She jumped on it, and the hat's glow died out. She sat down, sighed deeply, and closed her eyes.

"Let's get outta here," she said.

Chisakimaku nodded. The Spirit Cloud (and Sukama) left Fourside. Inside the portal, our heroine made a statement.

"You know what?"

"What?" Kirby said.

Jigglypuff's hat glowed yellow.

"I think he was actually happy to get sealed."

_Yep. This chapter has omitted scenes like Chapter 9. But instead of being indefinitely removed, they're being moved to the beginning of the next chapter. That's because I think what you just read was a much more fitting ending._


	14. Final Memories

_It's been...a little over half a year since I last updated. As with several more of my stories, I'm well overdue. It's not much in the length department, but it is, to say the least, something to read. _

_We're almost done here._

Chapter 14: Final Memories

When the four had finally reached the Manor, it was 12:45 pm. It was during this time, where the supposed climax was nigh, that the Spirit Hunter had a strange feeling. Maybe...

Maybe the Smash Spirits weren't so evil.

Would something so evil want to fight for their family like Circuit had? Could there be some kind of larger influence behind these events? Larger even than the final spirit his or herself? Now was the worst time to be thinking of things like that. Only 1 more capture was required to ensure the Smash Bros. World's future. Compassion and doubt were not options.

"So what now?" asked Kirby.

Jigglypuff looked around. As usual, everything had returned to its original state. But Jigglypuff wanted to see the fountain's condition. It was very strange indeed.

The fountain was flashing rainbow. Violently flashing. She decided to check it out as soon as possible.

"We're going back to the fountain. But first..." Her stomach growled slowly. The Spirit Cloud reached her window; she and Kirby went into Jigglypuff's room.

"We'll see you," said Sukama.

"Bye, chi!" Chisakimaku said as the Spirit Cloud ascended into the sky, along with Sukama.

Jigglypuff and Kirby walked downstairs to the kitchen, where Young Link and a suit-less Samus were searching for some lunch. Young Link eventually found a couple of chicken wings. Samus made 2 ham & cheese sandwiches with lettuce, tomato, mayo, and an olive. She kept one and gave the other to Kirby. She also made Jigglypuff a turkey & cheese sandwich, dry, save for a dab of mustard. They thanked Samus for the preparation and left the Manor with sandwiches in hand. Kirby followed Jigglypuff to the magic fountain, which, for some reason, emitted no scents. But the flashes of rainbow light could be seen several hundreds of feet away. In fact, when they finally reached the fountain, they had to shield their eyes. This wasn't good.

"How are we gonna get to the past now? We can't even look at the water!" Kirby said.

"I know. But we have to try!" said Jigglypuff.

She took one step closer to the fountain. A small beam of concentrated white light came out of it and struck Jigglypuff's hat. She tried to move, but it was no use. Within seconds, she was in a trance.

Kirby soon noticed it. He tried to snap her out of it, but there was some sort of force field blocking him. Jigglypuff began to hover in mid-air. Her hat grew incredibly bright. The fountain followed suit. Kirby had to close his eyes for several unwanted seconds. When he opened them, the light had disappeared. As did Jigglypuff.

"Hey! That's not fair! Where'd she...go?" Kirby hopelessly sat. He had no choice but to wait.

* * *

When Jigglypuff regained consciousness, she found herself lying on the grass, face-up. She could hear distant screams, and the sky became increasingly dark. She immediately stood up.

Chaos.

The village's protective rainbow had been destroyed. Huts were being demolished by huge rocks falling from the sky, water geysers from below, and several tornadoes. Lightning bolts struck at random, shocking unsuspecting villagers. The Seven Smash Spirits had arrived.

"3 are missing here...Volcanis, Crystal, and whatever the last spirit is, it's not here. I gotta check this out," she said to herself. Her hat glowed sky-blue and she took flight. When she was above the village, she noticed that the residents that weren't unfortunate enough to have been shocked, crushed, or taken to the sky held their chests tightly, began coughing, wheezing, and falling to the floor. After a few seconds of suffering, they began to puke fairly large amounts of darkened blood and eventually cease all movement. Jigglypuff shuddered.

"This is sick...What spirit could've this?"

She flew a good distance, but couldn't find anything of use. Suddenly, she felt a strong gust of wind move right by her. It was so strong that it spun her around several times. When she did, she caught glimpses of Sukama. He seemed to be heading for the wishing well.

"I can't find her. I'll just follow Sukama and see what's up," she decided. She flew to the well as quickly as she possibly could. It seemed that he, Sukama, suffered the same fate as the many rabbits of the village. He was tightly clenching his chest. It was getting harder for him to breathe. He began to talk to himself.

"No...I can't die...I have to help her...I..."

His voice was faint and strained. His heart began to beat faster and faster. Soon it felt like it was going to explode. The warmth in his heart slowly slipped away as he fell to his knees.

"I have to...help..."

Sukama lost so much energy that he couldn't hold his chest anymore. He fell to his hands. He began to gasp for air.

"She...promised..."

He fell to the floor completely, lifeless.

"Something had to have happened to revive him! If not...I wouldn't..." Jigglypuff was overwrought with worry, and even started sweating.

Several minutes passed. If she had fingernails, they would've been bitten to the base.

For some reason, Sukama never coughed up any blood. That meant that he was still somewhat alive, and this kept Jigglypuff floating there in nervous anticipation. How did he survive? What happened to him afterwards? What of the village?

As Jigglypuff focused intensely on him, she noticed the atmosphere was becoming brighter somehow. She could also hear a faint, echoing heartbeat.

_What's going on?_ she thought. She gasped. Somehow, she could hear her own thoughts as if she'd said them aloud. Then she began to hear other voices. Voices she had never heard before. Voices that echoed as her thoughts did.

_Sukama, Sukama, Sukama... _A female voice, laden with pity, yet definitely caring.

_Whatever happened to you? _A male voice, of the same overall feel as the former.

_Who...who are you people? _Sukama's voice.

"What's going on here? Who are these people?" Jigglypuff asked herself. The male and female voices alternated, with the male speaking first.

_Come on. You're stronger than that._

_Tell me who you are. You have to be pretty close...if you know my strength._

_I am your mother._

_I am, of course, your father._

_What? But...how...?_

_I know you're confused. When we disappeared, well, all contact was lost._

_We're the only two relatives you have left, son._

_What about the others?_

_They don't matter right now. The only thing that matters is you...and Chisakimaku._

_She's out there right now, fighting for the future. _

_And you have to be by her side._

_But I'm almost-_

_Dead? Don't be silly._

_We didn't create you for you to die so easily._

_Besides...she made a promise..._

_It can't be fulfilled if you're dead._

_She'll keep me alive...the feeling in my heart...will keep me alive..._

_Yes, sweetie, with a little of your help._

_You want to live don't you?_

_Yes._

_You want to help her, right?_

_Without question._

_Well, what are you waiting for?_

_Remember, you choose whether to live or die._

_But she's already influenced the decision._

_All you need now to survive is willpower._

_You weren't made to die._

The voices integrated and spoke as one.

_You will get rid of the dark forces in your heart. You will see her again. You will return to the skies. You will live...You must live! Death is not an option! Go to her!_

Suddenly, Jigglypuff was nearly blinded by (what else?) an intense flash of light. When she was finally able to see, the form of Sukama was hovering in mid-air, just like Jigglypuff was before she traveled to the past. The light's radius grew larger and larger. Jigglypuff was soon enveloped in light, and could see nothing but white. Even when she closed her eyes, white was what she saw. Pretty soon, she was able to see Sukama slowly walking towards her.

"Sukama! Are you okay?" she called out, afraid to move.

"I'm fine," Sukama answered..

"Wait...you can hear me? What am I doing here?"

Sukama didn't answer. He just kept walking. He soon stopped in front of her, and extended his hand.

"What are you doing?" Jigglypuff asked.

Sukama's hand began to shine. In all of the whiteness, Jigglypuff could see it.

"Relax...if you plan on defeating the final spirit...saving your world...you can't do it in your present state. I will help you to strengthen your own spirit so you can stand a chance."

"How is that even possible? I'm still in the past, aren't I?"

"You are in an alternate dimension created by the fountain. When Chisakimaku was sealed, this was where she was kept. The Smash Spirits had been drained of their power, which is the only reason she's still alive."

"So I wasn't in the past at all, just being a spectator. That makes sense. But how did _you_ get here?"

"Don't worry about it."

A multi-colored beam struck Jigglypuff's hat. It began to shine just like the beam. Eventually, Jigglypuff herself started to shine. She felt her heart beating faster and growing warmer. The feeling didn't cease, and it didn't hurt at all. It felt good. She didn't want it to go away. She could feel her strength rising.

"This battle will be the longest and toughest you've ever been in. Losing is out of the question, as is dying. Remember, the fate of the world is riding on your skill...and everybody's counting on you."

Sukama's voice echoed in Jigglypuff's mind. The feeling in her heart began to cease. As it did, Jigglypuff thought about something. No one except for Kirby and Mewtwo knew her secret. How could _everybody _be counting on her?

The feeling in her heart faded, just as the whiteness did. Within seconds, there was only black. She heard one final statement.

"Keep your spirit alive..."

* * *

"Jigglypuff...Jigglypuff, wake up...speak to me..."

The voice was faint, but Jigglypuff knew that it was Kirby.

"Jigglypuff, we have big trouble!"

She slowly opened her eyes. Kirby was standing directly above her.

"What's going on? What happened?" she asked, sitting up. Her body felt warmer, for some reason. She also noticed that her hat was flashing powerfully.

"What happened to you in there?" Kirby asked, staring at it.

"Sukama...strengthened my spirit. I think it made me become more skilled," answered Jigglypuff, uncertain.

"You're really gonna need that skill..."

Jigglypuff stood up.

"It's here, isn't it?"

"Uh, yeah."

Jigglypuff slowly turned around, hoping it wasn't too bad. Her already large eyes widened.

"Oh, great..."

_What happened to the world? How bad could it be? And just who or what is the remaining spirit? Find out in Chapter 15._


	15. The Ultimate Light Part 1

_It's winding down now...the final battle...s..._

Chapter 15: The Ultimate Light Part 1

The Smash Bros. World had practically gone to hell. The sky was filled with menacing dark clouds, darker than storm clouds. Black lightning bolts struck the ground constantly and in a huge radius, creating large holes in what seemed like the planet. The world was crumbling, unraveling by the seams. Large chunks of land were disappearing every few seconds, and trees melted into a black, inky, acidic substance. This meant that Kirby and Jigglypuff had to leave the park as soon as possible.

"Jigglypuff, we gotta get back to the Manor!" Kirby exclaimed.

Jigglypuff grabbed Kirby's nub.

"You think?"

The two rushed upward rapidly, seconds before they would've melted.

"How'd you move so fast?" Kirby asked.

"I don't know..." Jigglypuff observed the empty space that used to be grass below her as she pondered her speed.

"Your hat's not even glowing!" Kirby added.

Jigglypuff was afraid and intrigued. She slowly raised her hand to remove the hat. She quickly took it off and flinched.

She remained afloat.

"This is...new..." she said.

"Is...?" Kirby pointed. "Is that space?"

"Huh?" Jigglypuff looked at the ground once more, and instantly, it was like she was hit by a Dynamicpunch. The holes that were created housed what looked like small pieces of the universe. The lightning bolts slowly ceased, the unnaturally dark clouds subsided, and the universe became visible in what used to be the sky. Even larger chunks of the ground started to vanish. Time to worry again.

"We have to go, now!" Jigglypuff said quickly. A bright aura began to surround her, and within seconds, they rushed toward the Manor, leaving a clear white streak behind them. Kirby noticed something.

"It doesn't look like we're getting any closer."

Jigglypuff stopped. By that time, half of the surroundings were now the universe. Yes, the two had not moved an inch since they took flight. The Manor was still the same distance away.

"We were pushed back...?" she wondered.

"Do you think that this place moves with us or something?" Kirby asked. Jigglypuff looked around. More pieces of the Smash Bros. World slowly faded into nothingness. The two became more and more concerned. Jigglypuff continued to look around. She spotted the magic fountain, which seemed to be floating since it was surrounded by nothing. She also spotted a figure standing atop the glass room of the Manor.

"Who...is that?"

It was Mewtwo.

"What's he doing there? And why now of all times?" Kirby complained.

"Something's wrong here," whispered Jigglypuff. She observed Mewtwo closely. Soon, he began to elevate. He crossed his arms. Then something strange happened. He smirked. As far away as he was, she noticed.

"There's _definitely_ something wrong."

"You don't think-"

"Yeah...let's see..."

Mewtwo began to laugh. But his laugh was deeper and much more sinister than his normal laugh. His purple eyes slowly converted to a dark purple glow. He began to emit an evil aura of the same color around his body. By this time, the entire Smash Bros. World had withered away into the unknown. Jigglypuff knew she couldn't stop it. It was bound to happen. But she knew she could change it. A spirit of darkness that uses others' bodies as hosts? To garner Mewtwo's body was a feat among feats in the Hunter's eyes. She knew better than to let her guard down, even though it never worked. In the Volcanis battle, she wasn't ambushed, but without Chiskumaki's help, she would've been killed. This had her thinking.

Where were those two, anyway?

"Your persistence has impressed me, Spirit Hunter. I thought for sure that at least Mizu would've killed you," the possessed Pokemon said in a fused voice. The two suddenly found themselves within 40 feet of the spirit. They could see that he was actually talking.

"Don't underestimate me. It _did_ bring doom to your 'siblings'," Jigglypuff responded, trying to remain calm.

"True...but I am far more superior in all aspects than those weak links."

"If you're so superior, why did you need Mewtwo's body?" Kirby cried out.

"2 reasons. 1: I know this creature's power. I've been observing him in every fight he's ever been with upon arrival. He has untapped potential, believe it or not." The spirit created a tiny Shadow Ball that hovered slightly above the left paw. "He suits my tastes, and I can enhance his abilities any way I see fit." The ball grew to an immense size in an immensely short time. It quickly vanished. "2: Like Circuit, I too enjoy a little...entertainment. I don't want the fight to end too quickly. My full power...well, I don't want to underestimate."

"Yeah! You shouldn't, chi!"

Jigglypuff and Kirby felt a wave of relief wash over them as the high-pitched voice echoed throughout the alternate realm they were now trapped in. But where was the voice coming from?

"So...you were released too. I should have known better." The possessed psychic cat closed his eyes. A swirling circle of rainbow light appeared between him and the two puffballs.

"That's right, chi! And I've brought an old friend with me, too!"

"You didn't finish me off after all." Sukama's voice.

"Well you know what they say." The spirit chuckled. "Practice will indeed make perfect."

Chisakimaku and Sukama slowly stepped out of the bright, spiraling circle of light. As they exited, the circle faded.

"Where the hell were you two?! I was so worried, worried for nothing!" Jigglypuff exclaimed.

Sukama gave a thumbs-up.

"I guess that fountain was a blessing after all."

Jigglypuff gained even more relief (with some anger mixed in). She knew that the magic fountain was becoming more and more useful ever since Sukama told his tear-jerking tale. If it sent he and Chisakimaku to an alternate dimension, who knew what it could possibly do in the intense battle to come? Lots, she hoped. She definitely needed all the help possible. This spirit wasn't going to be anywhere near quick, and everything but easy. The Smash Bros. World, created by the Hands, was gone. Destroyed, maybe, but definitely gone. (Conversely, the result was eerily gorgeous. Easily 40 times prettier than Final Destination.) That task would take all of the first 6 spirits combined.

Thinking time was over. Jigglypuff proceeded to pay close attention to the Spirit of Darkness, joining the other 3.

"Yes. It seems the gang has finally been assembled."

Time seemed to slow as he continued talking, his voice still reverberating.

"Before I send you all away..."

The four became especially concerned.

"I need to tell you something. I plan on killing each one of you. You especially, Spirit Hunter." He pointed a finger at her that blazed with darkness. "I _will_ make this world mine, and I _will_ get rid of everyone who objects."

"We'll see," said Jigglypuff, slightly cocky and still a bit spooked.

"Indeed we will..." the spirit replied, congruently cocky. His aura became darker and intensified; the same went for his eyes. He extended his stolen white arms. Four blackish-purple spiraling circles, much like the one of light from earlier, materialized in front of the four. They knew the obvious: the circles were designated portals. These portals spiraled rather quickly, and the four soon realized that they were unwillingly being dragged into each one.

"Looks like the fate of this world rests as much on us as it does you, Jigglypuff," Sukama said, cool as a cucumber.

"I know..." Jigglypuff agreed regretfully. "I'm sorry."

She was especially sorry for Kirby, who was on the verge of petrified.

"Don't be."

Jigglypuff was taken aback a little by Chisakimaku's comment.

"To tell you the truth, I needed some action after watching you!"

Jigglypuff was relieved, but still very much worried. If her friends died because of her so-called "duty", she could never forgive herself. Especially (again) Kirby, for he was the only one without magic to defend himself. Or was he?

Either way, they all prepared for the worst as their were sucked inside the darkness. The spirit made one last chuckle before everything went black.

_I try to help...and here I am..._

Falling through darkness.

_This is new...this never happened to me before..._

Falling through nothingness.

_I may sound crazy for this...I'm gonna have some fun..._

Falling through non-existence.

_This is it...if I mess up here...everyone pays the price..._

Just falling...infinite falling...

No sights...

No sounds...

No feelings...

Just falling...

Falling forever...

_You are..._

Into nothing...

Nothing...

_The ultimate..._

* * *

Kirby slowly opened his eyes. He wasn't in much pain, except for a slight headache. At least he was alive, which he felt was a privilege.

"Where am I?" he said to himself.

He didn't bother standing. All he did was lie on the grass below and stare at the slightly discolored sky above him. Its clouds moved quicker than normal, but they were still white. The sky itself had a darker blue shade. It was light out without benefit of sunlight. To Kirby's surprise, there was no sun at all.

"That's funny...Is this what happened to the Smash Bros. World?"

He had indeed hoped not. It was much too quiet in whatever dimension he had landed in. Everything just seemed so artificial. Nature had died in this place. Kirby had to see just how much of it died. He jumped up.

Wonder devolved into confusion.

"What is all this?"

The land was vast, a mixture of a plain and a rocky field. It seemed to be surrounded by a dome-shaped barrier of darkness, which was why the sky's shade was so dark. But it had to be miles before he could reach either side of the dome. He cringed at the thought of what he just realized.

There was a battle coming on.

"Why me? Why?" Kirby whined. He strongly felt that this day would be his last. Suddenly he heard a distant, furious squawk. He frantically looked around.

"What...?"

An intense gust of wind had Kirby flying head-over-heels and landing face-first in the grass. He rose and brushed off the dirt.

"Ouch...wait a minute!"

He looked up.

"No way..."

A bird was flying away at high speed. It was huge. At that distance, it was Kirby's size, so it had to be huge. Kirby couldn't forget. He couldn't forget the metallic sheen, the rainbow coloring, the tremendous speed, the deafening squawks, the razor-sharp feathers. There was a little added surprise, however.

Red eyes. Red, menacing, glowing, piercing, evil eyes.

"Dyna Blade? What happened to her?" Kirby prepared for Dyna Blade's return. As she homed in on the little pink speck, a dark purple aura surrounded her.

"This is gonna hurt."

* * *

Meanwhile...

Sukama couldn't see a thing. Just black. He had his sense of self. He could feel. He could hear and smell normally. He was fine. But he chose to keep his eyes closed. And he chose to remain lying face-up on the warm sand. He didn't care right now, it all felt too good. The soothing warmness of the sand coupled with the calming coolness of the semi-salty smelling breeze and the occasional mist that navigated to his skin created a pleasant sensation he'd never felt before. Even that soft female voice that was trying him to open his eyes...

"I'm not asleep or unconscious."

"Good..."

Sukama opened his eyes and sat up. He glanced at the ocean in front of him, and now, for some reason, he could hear the tide. The sun was attempting to hide behind the ocean, confusing the sky and making distorted, beautiful colors. There were no birds in sight.

Sukama turned to his right, towards the girl.

"I was so worried..."

Sukama didn't respond.

"Are you hungry? Thirsty? Anythi-" She was cut off quick.

"Where am I?"

"Oh. Uh..." The girl hesitated.

"Just...never mind." Sukama looked around some more. Just some trees to the east, some benches along a narrow road like a walkway, mountains to the south, and a small oceanside house on the beach. Very small, almost hut-like. He felt that this would be his next destination.

_Seems innocent enough,_ he thought.

"So you live here, huh?"

"Yes."

"Doesn't look like anyone else is here. I wonder where they ended up?"

"Excuse me."

Sukama took a good look at the girl, for the first time. Her appearance was acutely simple. An inch or two shorter than he was, thigh-length black hair, shin-length beige dress. He couldn't really see her facial features, but she looked shy.

"Are you coming in?"

That question scared Sukama for several reasons:

He didn't trust a thing in this dimension he was in. Most of the distrust came from the girl. Once inside, who knew what she could do to him?

It could be a total waste of time. He had friends to find. But he didn't know how to start looking.

For some reason, walking became hard for him, yet alone standing.

It took a while - she helped carry him to the house, took him into the dining room (one of only two rooms the house had), prepared some soup which they ate in awkward silence - but Sukama had to eliminate the newfound thought. A thought thought to be unthinkable. A thought that he hadn't had in nearly 8 centuries. A thought that he hoped wasn't redirected in any way. He thought he would lose it if the thought didn't cease.

It scared him.

* * *

Meanwhile...

Chisakimaku was stunned. Just stunned to the point of speechlessness. The fact that she was in the woods with nature all around her fazed her none. The fact that it was around noon, and it was sunny and cool out, fazed her none. The fact that the Spirit Cloud actually made it fazed her none. For what she faced now was beyond her. Completely.

She was gazing into the eyes of Chisakumaki.

And all she could do was gaze.

For 2 minutes straight.

"...Yeah...uh...hi?" Chisakumaki finally spoke.

"How did this happen, chi?" Chisakimaku shook her head in confusion.

"Rhetorical questions won't do us any good. We need to find out where we are, where _they_ are, and how to get out of wherever that spirit sent us."

"Any ideas?"

"Not one."

Chisakimaku was silent for about 4 seconds.

"Figures, chi." The Spirit of the Rainbow and the Spirit of Love looked around a bit. The sun shone through the branches of trees, creating warm rays of light. The breezes that passed by every few seconds made the branches bow, and the rays reposition. Birds and certain insects chirped. Nature was abundant there.

With nature came tranquility.

With tranquility came monotony.

With monotony came boredom.

Eventually the two stopped looking around. Chisakimaku jumped onto the Spirit Cloud.

"Let's search from the air, chi."

"Yeah, good idea." Chisakumaki did the same. The seal was put up and the cloud rose.

And rose.

Above the branches.

Above the trees.

Above all, above the woods.

"What the...?"

Meeting her alter-ego fazed her a lot. But what she witnessed now...well, she was just flabbergasted.

"Well, that's one question answered." Chisakumaki could tell what was going on.

"Are those...domes?"

They could see, inside a very dark, very wavy dimension, that there were 3 domes, counting theirs. It appeared that as they reached a certain height, the sky vanished, and the outer barrier of darkness was readily visible.

"They sure look like it," Chisakumaki answered.

"If there are fights going on now, there's no way for us to help them or for them to escape, chi."

"If there are fights going on over _there..._"

Chisakimaku didn't want to think about it. All she knew was:

They were helplessly trapped.

If they could escape, they couldn't exactly trust the dimension these domes were in.

It was impossible to tell who was where. The outer areas of the domes were incredibly dark.

The two could hear something growling.

The two could hear someone laughing.

* * *

Meanwhile...

"This better not be one of those surreal universes..."

"Or what?"

Jigglypuff was standing in an all-white area. As she talked to herself (well, it was the general idea anyway) her voice echoed slightly. There were no shadows here. She lost her friends.

And she had this stupid spirit to deal with.

"Where are you? Show yourself!" she shouted.

"I can hear you. There's no one else here," the spirit replied.

"This is an interesting color choice for someone so dark."

"It wasn't my choice. Not that it matters much. You think I'm bad now...wait until the darkness arises. I'll kill you and your pathetic friends, too."

"Where did you take them?"

"Patience, puffball."

"Where _are_ they?" She got real angry real fast.

"Not here."

"Seriously? Wow..." She got real sarcastic real fast. "Are they still alive?"

"That I don't know. I'll ask my minions when you're dead."

The calm whiteness of Jigglypuff's environment slowly faded to black.

"Just you wait. You'll eternally regret the day you met that accursed rabbit."

Jigglypuff couldn't help but scoff as her aura returned.

"Maybe...but you'll definitely regret meeting me!"

_Part 2 coming relatively soon. Probably. I don't want it to end yet...It's my first...they grow up so freakin' slow..._


	16. The Ultimate Light Part 2

_My first update of the new year is for my first story. This particular part is pretty much preliminary action, which should segue into some of the more epic stuff I'm expecting (and probably you, too). With that out of the way, enjoy._

_Also...it's from the show. You'll know what I'm talking about._

Chapter 16: The Ultimate Light Part 2

In the field...

Kirby was frantically trying to escape Dyna Blade's fury. Since when did she fire lasers, anyway?

"I gotta get to those rocks," said Kirby, panting like crazy. He had been running for what felt to him like an hour, though it was actually around 6 minutes. And he continued running for cover, dodging laser blasts seemingly every 3 seconds. One of them got incredibly close to hitting him. The force of the explosion at his backside knocked him forward, very far and very fast. Right into the rocky area. He immediately took cover.

"I'm safe. For now," Kirby said while catching his breath.

Dyna Blade was definitely frustrated. The concentration of rocks was too dense, so she flew around in circles, desperately searching for an opening. Nothing. She moved away from the rocks.

"...Did she leave?"

A thunderous flap of wings. Kirby braced himself for the strong gust of wind that followed.

"Oh, great."

A thunderous flap of wings. A stronger wind gust. One final flap. A tornado began forming.

"Oh no." Kirby held on tightly to a boulder. He could feel his body becoming lighter and rising. He could see other rocks flying upward, one by one. His rock was next.

Kirby tumbled helplessly upward, his screams becoming fainter and fainter until Dyna Blade heard it no longer. Pretty soon, the tornado died out and the rocks began to plummet. One of them plummeted onto the mighty bird's head.

Very, very hard.

So hard that it broke her hover and she ended up on the ground. Rock Kirby landed in front of her beak.

_So, you wanna play rough, huh? Try this!_

Dyna Blade groaned and began rising again. As she did, Kirby jumped straight up into the air, grew to roughly thrice his normal size, hardened, and landed with great force on Dyna Blade's back. 12 times.

By the end, Dyna Blade was half-buried. Kirby returned to his normal Rock form.

"Give up yet?"

Dyna Blade lifted her head and looked directly at Kirby. Her eyes shone bright yellow.

"Uhh..."

* * *

Meanwhile, at the beach..

Sukama and the girl that took him in (he learned that her name was Violet) had finished eating soup and were putting their bowls in the sink. Up until this point, besides the asking and receiving of the name Violet, there was silence. As Sukama was about to leave the sink, he noticed the strange girl looking directly at him. Into his eyes. They exchanged stares for a few seconds. Sukama couldn't sense a soul behind her purple, almost glazed-over eyes.

Violet began advancing on him.

"Hey, what-?" With each step forward Violet took, he moved a step back. He felt nervous, scared, and even guilty for almost liking it. Violet cracked a smirk.

"You're cute."

"So I'm told."

"By-"

"By my girlfriend."

Into the dining room.

"I'm better for you than her."

"You're so sure."

Violet chuckled and her pace quickened slightly.

"I've seen the way you looked at me. You know you like me."

"You know that whole 'head says yes, heart says no' thing, don't you?" Sukama felt a distinct, gentle warmth in his chest as he said that. Which is why he tripped and fell backwards onto the loveseat in the living room. He was cornered with nowhere to go except up. Or straight.

"I have a feeling this will change your mind."

Violet inched closer and closer to Sukama's face. The two could feel each other's hot breath on their faces. Sukama leaned his head as far back as he could, to no avail. When their lips were less than a centimeter away from each other; when they were so close, the very presence tickled, Sukama raised his right fist. Violet turned to look at it.

It was glowing brightly.

"My fist and my heart are in unison. My head is outvoted."

In a flash, Violet was sent flying through the roof of her house at high velocity. She landed hard, face-first, on the sand a few meters away. Sukama hovered close by, fist still glowing, watching her.

"That's not all you got now, is it?"

Sukama smirked. Violet chuckled (though muffled, Sukama could still hear it). She got up slowly and brushed the sand off. Then she turned to look at her assailant.

Her eyes were glowing red.

"You'll pay for that, you cute bastard..."

* * *

Meanwhile...

Chisakimaku and Chisakumaki now stood in the woods, awaiting _their_ assailant. They had very recently been struck out of the sky by an invisible force. A sharp force, which was able to slice the Spirit Cloud clean in half. Whoever or whatever did this was a definite threat.

A bush rustled. The unknown creature growled once more. The enemy appeared.

He was short; no taller than Chisakimaku. He wasn't human; undoubtedly a creature. He was dark like the night and wore a navy blue, flowing cape. His figure was mostly hidden due to this, but the two spirits could see that he had deep, yellowish-gold eyes and a dark, cerulean headband. And a sword, likely where that "force" originated. It wasn't very long, but it was menacing, just because of what it could do to a cloud. The blade was narrow and purple, emanating dark energies, and the hilt seemed to be made of pure darkness.

"Didn't think I'd miss that one." His voice was medium-pitched. Almost like Circuit's, but a tad deeper.

"Who are you?" asked Chisakumaki, cautious.

"My dad calls me Luite. And as far as I know, he hates your guts."

"Where's the other one, chi?" asked Chisakimaku. Behind her, the Spirit Cloud rejoined itself.

"Come on, Zix!"

Chisakumaki was knocked into a tree, hard. Once there, glowing, piercing red eyes confronted her light blue ones. Zix was also consisting of nothing but darkness. Darkness in the form of a leopard.

Chisakumaki's hands started to glow brightly with a pink shine.

"I'll take whatever this thing is." She phased through the tree before Zix bit her face off.

"Good. He was longing for a little fun."

Chisakimaku launched a ball of light at Luite. He blocked it with his sword and the two watched it fall to the ground and disintegrate slowly.

"You're _not_ winning, chi." The light between them finally died after several seconds. As soon as it did, Luite disappeared. Chisakimaku quickly took to the air, looking around the dome for her opponent. She heard the brandish. She heard the slash. A long, narrow line imprinted itself in the dome's wall and almost instantly vanished, creating ripples in its darkness.

The tip of Chisakimaku's left ear had been sliced off.

She started to fly as fast as she could. The slashing continued. Each and every slash either missed completely or grazed the fur. Her hands glowed like her counterpart's. Luite appeared in her flight path, sword in hand. The two flew into each other. There was a loud clang. Her light _could_ block the blade, and she proceeded to do so.

Chisakumaki was faring rather evenly as well. Zix was blindingly fast with his strikes, but Chisakumaki's pinker light ensured that she could hold her own. But she still didn't know how to actually defeat it.

* * *

Meanwhile...

Jigglypuff had been fighting the possessed Mewtwo for about a minute. He had become significantly stronger; if she had retained her previous strength, she would've perished 50 seconds ago. But her hat had yet to shine. Still, she was surviving.

The almost-totally dark environment was made bearable by tiny dots of light that seemed to be miles away, like stars. This meant that as Mewtwo fought, his body wavered in and out of Jigglypuff's sight. This was the most she had seen him fight hand-to-hand. He punched, kicked, grabbed, and lashed his tail, only sometimes utilizing his dark forces; and his psychic powers weren't used at all. Maybe only the true Mewtwo could use them. Maybe they didn't work. Either way, the battle was intense.

"You're holding back," the spirit said, throwing a flurry of punches at the puffball. She caught both of his paws.

"That's not my fault, believe m-"

Mewtwo's knee found itself in Jigglypuff's face. He grasped her head, held his free palm in front of her face, and accumulated darkness in it, slowly. She stared at it, frowning, thinking about how much it would hurt.

"If I said I had expected more..."

The small star-like dots began to blink out, one by one.

"I'd be lying."

An uppercut, accompanied by a dark explosion, sent the Spirit Hunter flying straight up (though it really didn't feel like it). The blow hurt, but the aftermath - the flying and intense burning - hurt more. Much more. As the possessed one warped to Jigglypuff's position, she stopped herself and hovered in mid-air (though it really didn't look like it).

The hat's glow grew brighter.

The spirit attempted to strike her with his tail. By attempted, I mean failed. Jigglypuff moved out the way and Pounded him in his side. Really quick. Really hard. By this point the star-like dots were increasing in volume, improving visibility.

The spirit winced and almost immediately tried to kick her in the face. Jigglypuff's response was a Pound to the parallel side. Mewtwo held the newly-struck side. She was actually hurting him. Pain that hadn't been felt in centuries. And she was just a foolish rookie...

"I won't be defeated by the likes of you..."

Mewtwo became a burning ball of dark essence. And disappeared.

* * *

Meanwhile...

Violet was 15 yards in front of Sukama, hovering, panting, angry. A brief tussle had just ceased. Violet tried to attack Sukama after her face met the sand, but failed. Sukama was much too quick in the air, and her berserk assault was a tiring waste.

Sukama stared into her glowing red eyes. If it weren't for the fact that his friends could've been dead by then, he'd feel pity and possibly remorse. Instead, he felt anger and impatience. Never a good combination.

"Listen, Violet, I don't have time for this! Just tell me how to get out of here so I can help my friends!" he yelled.

"Am I not good enough for you...?" She whispered, but he could still hear her. She almost sounded sad. Sukama almost cared.

"I really don't think you'll like my answer, which you should know by now anyway."

The ocean below them turned black.

"It's all his fault...he never said you were so..." Violet gazed at the perfection she could not attain and exhaled longingly. It hurt to look at him. She eventually continued: "Fine. If I can't be yours...you'll never be anyone else's."

"Only time will tell, now, won't it?"

The sun was split in half. One half remained the same. The other half looked like it was being eaten by darkness. As a result, half of the landscape was dark, the other half, light.

And wouldn't you know, Violet was on the dark side.

"Go to hell."

Sukama quickly flew back, avoiding a burst of the darkened ocean. The burst was quick and from what he could tell, very hot. There was a visible amount of steam coming from the water. He sensed more coming and flew fast. His flight path (and by consequence, the bursts of water) were in a large U-shaped pattern. As he flew, Violet watched and smirked. This cheered her up plenty. She kept her smirk when the U ended, 200 yards to her left. It began to dissipate when she saw him racing towards her.

The glowing fist that started it all.

Sukama's 200-yard-long flight took a little less than 4 seconds. But what would've been a mighty blow was blocked. By a wall of reinforced hair.

"...That wasn't supposed to happen."

The hair proceeded to wrap itself around his neck and strangle him. Violet was visible again. Despite the darkness.

"Forget time. You're going down."

Sukama painfully reached for his halo and desperately attempted to slice through the hair. He couldn't die from suffocation (as far as he knew), however, being unconscious now, especially around her, was unacceptable. It took a little while, but the halo cut through, and Sukama broke free. Violet shot a dark red laser from her eyes. Sukama dodged the laser, which just barely missed his hip, and threw his halo at her. It went straight through her chest, exiting out the other end and returning to Sukama's head.

Action halted.

Sukama waited.

Violet laughed. She didn't hurt. She didn't bleed. The landscape was getting darker, and Sukama was running out of time.

* * *

Meanwhile...

Kirby was hanging on to the back of Dyna Blade's head for dear life. Whatever came out of her eyes knocked the rock right out of him, and made him fly several thousand feet. This was the only way to avoid it. He'd been doing this for about a minute now, and his nubs were giving away from the great bird's violent flailing.

He needed a plan, and fast. But, then again, what could he possibly do from behind Dyna Blade's head? All he could do was hold out and wait and pray that the flailing would tire her out before him. So far, no such luck. Whatever diabolical force had taken over her essence seemed to have eliminated fatigue. Normally she would've at least slowed down by that time, but not this time.

Dyna Blade stopped her rampage and began a speedy ascension. Kirby didn't want to think about what was coming up. At the pinnacle of the flight, Kirby was able to see through the "sky". A scattered jumble of dark and gray was on the other side. He also just noticed how curved the "sky" actually was. It was stranger than he originally conceived.

Dyna Blade did half of a loop and began a speedy decline. Kirby was running out of options.

_Let go, _ he thought, _and she'll tear me apart. Stay on, and I'll be a whole lot shorter._ She was, in fact, falling head-first. _There's no way out of this one...if only I could...hey. Yeah, that sounds like it could work. Nubs, don't fail me now._

The plain was coming up fast. Kirby needed to time it just right for it to work. Otherwise...

Five seconds until impact. Kirby shifted what little body weight he had the appropriate way.

Four. He was ready.

Three. He loosened his grip.

Two. He was set.

One-and-a-half. He let go.

Dyna Blade had created the area's only crater. A large mass of dust, rock, and dirt rose up and fell in all directions. The dust lingered for a bit. Kirby groaned slightly and let go of the great bird's tail feathers. Any earlier, and he would've slipped off. He was a lucky one.

Kirby rushed to Dyna Blade's head for inspection. She was weak, but conscious. He took the time to re-inhale another boulder and become Rock Kirby. Before he delivered what would've been the final blow, he needed to make sure that the real Dyna Blade wasn't still in there. He needed her to open her eyes. He didn't want to get too close, but he had to know. The wait wasn't too long. Her eyes were still piercing red. A split-second before Kirby prepared to end it, she blinked, and he saw the mother's gentle, purple eyes. She was there. But how was she going to get out?

"Dyna Blade!" Kirby inched closer. "Are you okay?"

She looked like she was trying to cry, but wasn't able. It was heartbreaking.

"Don't worry. I'll get you back to your kids...somehow."

Dyna Blade smiled weakly. Then, without warning, and with no transition, she cried out in pain. Her eyes became more intensely red than before. Luckily for Kirby, she couldn't get up.

* * *

Meanwhile...

Chisakumaki had Zix by the tail, after much difficulty. Her clothes were tattered and torn by the fierce battle beforehand. Zix had gotten most of the blows in because of its incredible agility, but now, finally, it was her turn. Her hands were bathed in a pink light as she flung the dark pet upward. She followed Zix's flight and punched it directly in its underside, producing a brief, white flash. Zix gave out a distinct cry of pain; a kind of muted, gurgling roar. To say the least, it was otherworldly. The sound was repeated when Chisakumaki punched it in its side. She quickly spun and kicked Zix in the same spot, knocking it away. Before it could recover, she flew after it and struck its back with both heels, knocking it straight down to the ground at high speed. It landed on its head. Chisakumaki's nose began to shine as she continued her assault as long as she was able.

Overhead, Chisakimaku and Luite were still duking it out. Glowing paws clashed against the dark blade over and over again. Chisakimaku lost part of the left side of her right ear, and was slightly bruised (!) but she wasn't ready to call it quits yet. Luite's cape was mostly tattered (reduced to ¼ its normal length) and his headband had been torn off, but he was good to go as well. They traded blows immensely fast. In 3 seconds, Luite delivered 33 slashes. Chisakimaku, whilst blocking and avoiding them, dealt 23 punches and 8 kicks. The last kick connected with Luite's chest. This was followed by a ball of light to the face. Luite screamed as the light burned him and completely disintegrated his cape. Chisakimaku took advantage of his anguish and stepped on him, taking him all the way to the ground.

Things were looking up.

* * *

Meanwhile...

Jigglypuff was now at Mewtwo's mercy. She was being tossed around like a ragdoll in a washing machine, and it was mortifying. And it was starting to hurt very badly. The background now had well-spaced narrow strips of light, so it was like silhouettes battling it out (well, one getting beat up by the other).

"Give up, Hunter! You've clearly met your match!"

Mewtwo hammered Jigglypuff into the invisible ground below. She almost lost consciousness. If she was supposed to be so strong, why did this toned-down fiend have so much of an advantage? If she got any stronger, he would likely do the same anyway. She quickly felt her desire to get up slipping away.

"Some savior you are. Get up and face your destiny," the spirit said.

The battered Jigglypuff didn't move.

"I'm fairly sure that in the beginning, you felt that you had a miniscule chance of making it this far. You were apparently wrong. I'm also fairly sure that you won't make it past this point. I'm glad you're willing to prove me right."

The spirit outstretched Mewtwo's paw to Jigglypuff's abused body, and formed a Shadow Ball, unnaturally dark. In a matter of seconds, the ball became a massive, crackling sphere of dark death, only parts of which could be seen due to the light. Jigglypuff remained unmoving.

"Last chance, puffball. The last chance for a second chance," Mewtwo said, smirking.

Jigglypuff slowly rolled onto her back and opened her eyes. She stared at the doom above her and wondered how this could be dealt with. She still didn't get up.

"Not enough." Mewtwo fired.

The heavily infused Shadow Ball fell, starting slow and gradually getting quicker. Jigglypuff squinted. No way it's over now. Not until she could see them again would she even consider the possibility of accepting defeat. As the doom sphere got closer and closer; as all the dark power became able to be felt; as all hope seemed lost, Jigglypuff shut her eyes.

White again.

At this point she couldn't tell whether her eyes were open or not. She didn't even know if she was alive. What she did know was that she could move. So she did. With almost no effort the Spirit Hunter stood up and took a look around. White. Familiar. That summed it up nicely.

Almost immediately, there was a voice. Unmistakably, it was a voice, but it was unfathomably soft. Softer than a whisper. So soft, a gender couldn't be attributed to it. So soft, it was like it didn't exist at all. But it could be heard, the translucent, faded voice.

_You...born...rise...light..._

"I don't understand..."

Her voice became like that which she heard. At the moment, that wasn't important. She didn't get it. What? What did it say?

_Stage 1...is over..._

* * *

In an instant, Jigglypuff could see what was really happening. She was assimilating into the monstrosity of a Shadow Ball. There was no pain, not even discomfort. She never felt better.

"What is this?" the spirit said with audible fright.

The black and purple and blue deathly mosaic of colors faded into white and teal and turquoise. The ball rose, with the Spirit Hunter inside, shining within her confines. Though the light wasn't the brightest ever, it hurt Mewtwo to be in its presence. His darkness, his essence, his being, it had to escape, and some of it did. Through his eyes. Through his mouth. Even through his nostrils.

Jigglypuff's ball contracted. Bathed in light, she started to shine completely white. She slowly rose. Mewtwo backed away. A ferocious cry. A mighty shockwave.

White.

* * *

_Great. Now it gets interesting. Everything after this point is new to all of us. I think I can deliver the epicnessosity. We're winding down to the end of a genesis here. My first story is almost complete._

_Hope you can stick around._


End file.
